Wednesday saw a major changing of the guard. No, I am not talking about the U.S. presidency. I’m speaking of the retirement of Roethlisberger’s draft mate, Philip Rivers. Rivers is heeding Old Man River in joining fellow 2004 draftee Elie Manning in the post-football world, where the water is fine. And Rivers looked a heck of a lot better than Ben Roethlisberger going down the stretch this season. Next, we’ll witness the departure of Drew Brees, whose impending retirement is the worst-kept secret in the NFL. The 42-year-old hung on for one last season in the Big Easy that was anything but easy. Hopes of ending his career under the ticker tape of a winning Super Bowl bid were not to be. Instead, Brees suffered an interception fest on Bourbon Street, and the Saints hopes of adding another trophy were torpedoed by those Bucs from Tampa. The fact that Brees only got one Lombardi and Rivers never so much as touched one is a testament to how tough it is, even for great quarterbacks. Ben Roethlisberger holds two trophies, and he played in another Super Bowl. But he won’t see another again. He – and Steelers Nation -- must give up on such false hopes. One season remains on Ben’s $43 million Steelers contract. Reports are he is leaning toward coming back one more time. This is a mistake, for both Ben and the Steelers. Instead, Big Ben should follow the good example of once-greats like Rivers and Brees – and proudly take his leave in Pittsburgh. I give you all the reasons why and a plethora of pitches for solving the Steelers problems at QB – DeShaun Watson, anyone? – in this forward-looking edition of the Steelers Update Podcast. 

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices