Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s ankle injury was common knowledge at the end of last season, but his shoulder never showed up on any injury reports.
It probably should have since Roethlisberger told Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he’s been dealing with a tear in his right rotator cuff since last November. Roethlisberger downplayed the seriousness of the injury when asked about how his arm is feeling after a few days of training camp.
“I’m good. It’s OK, just sore. I have a little torn rotator cuff. That doesn’t heal. We just have to hope it doesn’t tear the rest of the way, according to Doc,” Roethlisberger said. “It actually feels great. I don’t have any pains anymore. Let’s just hope it doesn’t get any worse.”
There’s not really much to add to what Roethlisberger said. If the injury doesn’t get worse, Roethlisberger should be fine. Any problems he had near the end of last season had to do with a lack of mobility because of the ankle and not his ability to throw the balls where he needed to throw them. A complete tear of the rotator cuff, on the other hand, would obviously put the Steelers in a tough spot this season.
If Roethlisberger’s arm does continue to hold up, he’d like to use it to throw passes to Mike Wallace. Roethlisberger told Bouchette that he’s spoken to Wallace and that he thinks it shouldn’t be too much longer until he’s able to have a conversation with him in person instead of over the phone.
“I don’t know what’s going on with his agent or what they’re telling each other, but he wants to be here,” Roethlisberger said. “I believe he will be here and I think he’ll be here soon.”
Once Wallace arrives, he’ll have to start learning Todd Haley’s offense. Roethlisberger said he’s still getting the hang of it, a transition that would surely be easier if the team had all of their offensive weapons on the field.