Fantasy Football: Should you start Ben Roethlisberger?

By Luis Tirado Jr. | Sep 9, 2015

When it comes to fantasy football, owners everywhere have to make sure they stick with their gut feeling when it comes to their premier option at quarterback. With most fantasy drafts in the books, owners now play the game of weekly strategy in figuring out which quarterback will yield them the most fantasy points. When it comes to Ben Roethlisberger this upcoming fantasy season, should owners consider starting him the majority of the year?

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Roethlisberger is coming off one of the best years of his prolific career and is going to pick up exactly where he left off. Last season, Roethlisberger totaled 4,952 passing yards on 408 completions, 32 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.

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Needless to say, he’s a man on a mission heading into 2015 as owners better believe he will try to achieve even greater numbers. Keep in mind, he threw 608 passes as the Steelers’ offense is pretty much dictated based on what he brings to the table under center. This time around though, expect to see Roethlisberger throw even more passes to make up for some of his missing pieces on offense the first few games of the season.

Just because Roethlisberger will be without Le’Veon Bell and Martavis Bryant to kickoff the season on the right note shouldn’t dismay fantasy owners from sticking with him all season long regardless. He’s still got Heath Miller, Markus Wheaton and of course, Antonio Brown as his main offensive weapons to keep those chains moving.

One area that fantasy owners might be weary about sticking with Roethlisberger consistency is due to the strength of schedule that might hit the Steelers hard this season. They will face more than a handful of top defenses which will test to see just how he’ll do against some of the better defenses the NFL has to offer. It will be tough but nothing Roethlisberger can’t handle as he should be just fine until his main offensive weapons in Bell and Bryant return.

When it comes to playing in the clutch and needing to score touchdowns to keep his team competitive in close games, there is no one that does it better than Roethlisberger. He’s become one of the elite quarterbacks playing today and above all else, continues to be consistent in every aspect of his game.

Aug 14, 2015; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) warms up before the start of a preseason NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Field. The Jacksonville Jaguars won 23-21. Mandatory Credit: Phil Sears-USA TODAY Sports

While most fantasy owners might put other quarterbacks ahead of Roethlisberger, keep in mind he’s been known to play some incredible football even though he’s not favored in particular matchups. He’s still considered by many as a QB1 option for a reason since he knows how to make big plays out of nowhere and has the potential to produce several breakout games in which he throws for many touchdowns. Once he gets hot, opposing defenses won’t have the answers to contain him.

Overall, fantasy owners should absolutely start Roethlisberger on a consistent basis and only truly use their other quarterback options during his bye week. Otherwise, stick with Roethlisberger the majority of the time as he’s out to turn his incredible performance of last year into a memory and might very well end up as a top three quarterback in fantasy football in 2015.

Next: Fantasy Football: Should you start Eli Manning?

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