There’s slightly less of Big Ben to go around this offseason.
At 6'5" and somewhere north of the 240 pounds he weighed at the Combine in 2004, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has worn that nickname well over the years. This offseason has seen him take a different approach to his workouts, however, and agent Ryan Tollner said that a “high-cardio” plan devised by the team’s trainers has resulted in Roethlisberger losing at least 15 pounds.
“He couldn’t really work out because he kept getting hurt,” Tollner said, via ESPN.com. “I think he said after the season, you know what, I’m going to lose weight to alleviate potential pain in my joints.”
Anything Roethlisberger can do to remain on the field is a good thing for the Steelers, although it’s not clear how much the various injuries he suffered in 2015 would have been alleviated by a smaller frame. Roethlisberger hurt his knee, foot and shoulder at various points and dealt with a concussion, and his habit of taking hits in exchange for hanging in the pocket long enough to make a play would seem to leave him vulnerable to aches and pains at any weight.