Art Rooney: ‘We've Got to Have Ben Retire as a Steeler'

Art Rooney: ‘We’ve got to have Ben retire as a Steeler’
Posted by: Rob Johnson January 8, 2014 in NFL, Steelers
http://sportsglory.com/nfl/art-roone...-steeler/12257
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Steelers president Art Rooney II said he wants quarterback Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh beyond his current contract.
“We’ve got to have Ben retire as a Steeler,” Rooney said Wednesday, per Scott Brown of ESPN.com. “There’s no doubt about that.”
Roethlisberger, 31, has two years left on his contract. The Steelers signed him to an eight-year, $102 million contract in 2008, when he had two years left on his original deal.
Rooney wouldn’t commit to the Steelers extending Roethlisberger in the offseason, but he is confident a deal would get done to keep the 10-year pro in Pittsburgh.
“When both sides are able to come together on an extension. I don’t know when that will be, but there’s no doubt we look at Ben as somebody who’s going to be here for the long term and hopefully five or more years,” Rooney said.
Roethlisberger threw for 4,261 yards, 28 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
“I think the second year of a new offense, you would hope for progress, and I think that’s what we got,” Rooney said. “I think Ben showed the kind of leadership that he’s capable of both on and off the field, getting through what was a very trying first half of the season. I think he was certainly one of the guys that kept the ship running in the right direction.”