Happy Monday Steeler Nation. It's not been the most pleasant last 48 hours or so for me. I came down with whatever was ailing my lady friend last week, and was more or less miserable all weekend except for the few hours that I got to enjoy the Pittsburgh Steelers improve to 4-1 with their 28-10 defeat of their historic rival, the Cleveland Browns. Huge thanks to all of you for keeping the conversation and analysis going in my absence. I'm still feeling pretty mediocre, but hopefully tomorrow I'm back closer to full strength.
In the meantime, a quick post handing out a 'gameball' for Week 6. It's a fairly obvious choice really, and an apropos one considering the circumstances. Ben Roethlisberger, in his 2010 debut, threw for 257 yards and 3 touchdowns. He wasn't perfect (his early interception was a horrible, rushed read and throw), but all things considered, he was stellar. He made all the different types of throws needed of an NFL quarterback, avoided pressure nicely, had a nice command of the huddle for his first game back, and generally just handled himself exquisitely given the magnitude of the moment.
Who knows just how good this team might be moving forward with Roethlisbergeer back at the controls. We'll learn a whole lot about this team in the next four weeks - three road games against teams with playoff aspirations (Miami, New Orleans, followed by a home tilt with the New England Patriots. If the defense can remain healthy, Big Ben doesn't try to do too much, and Bruce Arians continues to dial up a nice balance of throws and runs, then look out, this could be an awfully fun year for us fans.