Ben Roethlisberger was forced to sit out the entire second half against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday after he hurt his elbow, and it sounds like the injury could potentially be serious.
Roethlisberger is expected to have an MRI on Monday that will help determine if he needs to undergo elbow surgery, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. The 37-year-old quarterback wants to avoid going under the knife so he can keep playing, but that decision will be left up to doctors.
A decision is expected today on whether Steelers’ QB Ben Roethlisberger will need elbow surgery, per league sources. Roethlisberger wants to avoid it all costs, but ultimately doctors will decide whether that’s possible.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 16, 2019
Roethlisberger’s injury was of the non-contact variety, which all but rules out the possibility that he sustained some sort of bump or bruise.
Pittsburgh Steelers players expressed concern about Roethlisberger’s injury after the game, with one player saying the QB had been battling inflammation in his elbow leading up to Sunday. It’s possible Roethlisberger has some sort of ligament issue. He completed 8-of-15 passes for 75 yards before departing, and he was seen wincing in pain on multiple occasions.
If there’s any silver lining for the Steelers, it is that second-year quarterback Mason Rudolph looked fairly sharp in relief of Roethlisberger on Sunday. The former Oklahoma State star completed 12-of-19 passes for 112 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
