Roethlisberger Officially Questionable, Tyler Murphy Activated vs. Chiefs
Although Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has been officially listed as “questionable†for this Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Steelers have given every indication that Landry Jones will indeed be making his first start.
Technically, the “questionable†rating carries with it a 50% chance to suit up on game day, but it appears Pittsburgh is using the tag as less of a hopeful Plan B, and more of a sign that he is yet to fully recover but should be healthy enough to start next week.
Some fans even floated the idea of starting Jones this week and dressing Big Ben as a backup quarterback, who could be inserted into the game if Jones were to struggle against Kansas City’s vaunted pass rush.
It isn’t hard to see why the coaching staff decided otherwise. Frankly, if Roethlisberger was healthy enough to put on pads and a helmet, he would be the starter, not the backup. This sort of “halfway-house†mentality could both upset the Steelers’ game plan and potentially put Jones under the pressure of a very short leash.
Late this week, the Steelers activated wide receiver, and former Boston College quarterback Tyler Murphy, to the active roster.
Murphy went undrafted and was quickly converted to wide receiver upon being picked up by the Steelers in mid-2015. The athletic, 6’2†prospect had shown raw talent at his new position throughout preseason and week 1, but will now revert back to his college role, at least for one more week.
The scrambling quarterback finished 7-6 as a starter in his final year of college, flourishing under Steve Addazio’s run-first offense. He will be best remembered for spearheading an upset victory over top-ten ranked USC; a game in which he rushed for 191 yards. By season’s end, Murphy’s 1079 yards on the ground broke the ACC single-season rushing record among all quarterbacks.
