Roethlisberger Declares the Steelers are a Throwing Team First

Ben Roethlisberger is making it official, declaring that the Steelers are a throwing team first and a running team second, a significant change in character and philosophy that one of the NFL’s most venerable franchises has rarely dared to make.

The evidence: Roethlisberger’s team-record 503 yards Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, the 10th-best passing day in NFL history. “I think it’s probably hard for people to really wrap their head and fingers around, but this offense is changing, this team is changing on offense,” Roethlisberger said Wednesday.

“It’s not a run-first team anymore. That’s not a bad thing, it really isn’t. We got two 1,000-yard receivers, we’ll have a 1,000-yard rusher, it’s a pretty fun thing.”