"I was preparing to write a glowing column about Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger -- in which I would have nominated him for the NFL MVP Award -- when he was sacked by Kansas City Chiefs rusher Tamba Hali in the third quarter of Monday night's matchup between the Chiefs and Steelers. Roethlisberger landed on his right shoulder and had to miss the rest of the game -- and might be out for an extended stretch of the season. However severe the injury is revealed to be, it could not have come at a worse time for Big Ben and the Steelers. Pittsburgh has done a great job all year dealing with injuries to key players at critical positions, but losing Roethlisberger for a significant amount of time would be too tough to overcome, in large part because Big Ben had been the glue that had held this team together. Despite playing with an injury-riddled line and backfield, Roethlisberger had been able to make the Steelers' offense function at a high level, making key plays with his feet, arm and mind -- which is why I believed he was an MVP candidate. I laugh whenever I hear football fans tell me that a potentially good quarterback would play better with an improved supporting cast. In reality, a true star quarterback will elevate the play of those around him. For an example of this, look no further than the Indianapolis Colts, who have been lifted to a 6-3 record by Andrew Luck. Big Ben was working similar magic in Pittsburgh. How many other quarterbacks do you think would be able to play behind that porous Steelers offensive line? Not many. As John Madden once said, "Winning is a great deodorant" for a team's problems; the same could be said about elite quarterbacks. " Read more: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap10...berger-crucial-to-pittsburgh-steelers-success
