Big Ben a Cardinal? It could have gone down that way
Imagine if the 2004 draft had flown off in a different direction, and the Arizona Cardinals did what most people thought they should have done and chosen a quarterback. But I'm not talking about any quarterback. I'm talking about one quarterback.
Some clubs had Big Ben ranked as the top quarterback in a draft that included Eli Manning and Philip Rivers, but he lasted until the 11th pick because Manning was taken with the first choice and Rivers with the fourth.
And, of course, because Arizona passed on him.
Instead of tapping Roethlisberger at the third spot, the Cardinals drafted a wide receiver. They chose the University of Pittsburgh's Larry Fitzgerald, and I think we all agree that seems to have worked out OK.
But what if they hadn't ... then what?
Then they get Roethlisberger, Rivers goes fourth and Pittsburgh does what ... draft Fitzgerald? I don't think so. He never would have made it past Detroit, which chose wide receiver Roy Williams at the seventh spot, or Jacksonville at the ninth position.
"Revisionist history is wonderful," said former Oakland personnel executive Michael Lombardi, who writes for the National Football Post. "But as you look back on it, with (former Arizona coach) Denny Green's relationship with the kid (Fitzgerald) and with his history of success with Randy Moss in Minnesota it was fairly easy to see what he would do.
"If you didn't have those parameters in there -- and I mean his relationship with (Fitzgerald) and his success in Minnesota -- maybe the Cardinals go somewhere else. But you could see this happening."
As Lombardi recalls it, some scouts knocked Fitzgerald because he didn't have top-shelf speed. But the position "is more about balance and explosion than it is real speed," he said, and the Cardinals must have agreed. They drafted Fitzgerald to team with Anquan Boldin, then waited on their franchise quarterback.
As it turns out, the 2004 draft delivered him, too ... only it took Arizona a year to find out.
That may need some explaining. When the New York Giants swung the blockbuster deal with San Diego that sent Manning to Big Blue, the Cardinals were back on the clock. That's because the Giants would later sign free agent Kurt Warner, released by St. Louis, and keep him only until Manning was ready to step in.
Once he was, Warner became expendable. He left for Arizona after one season in New York.
So by taking Fitzgerald with the first pick, the Cardinals made this Super Bowl possible for both sides. First, they opened the door to Warner by not taking a quarterback with the third pick, which made Arizona an option when he exited the Giants. Second, they left Roethlisberger on the board for Pittsburgh.
At the time the Steelers had Tommy Maddox, and while they won with him they didn't win a lot. They made the 2002 playoffs, then fizzled a year later, with coach Bill Cowher telling his offensive coordinator he'd seen enough of the "Tommy Gun" and wanted to return to a power running game.
That offensive coordinator was Ken Whisenhunt, promoted in 2004 after assistant Mike Mularkey left for Buffalo, and all he did was turn the 31st-ranked rushing attack into the league's second-best unit in his first season on the job -- with, of course, Roethlisberger as his quarterback.
"People ask me why Pittsburgh is so consistent," said former Steelers' quarterback Mark Malone, now a broadcaster for Westwood One radio, "and they've established a style that people have embraced and expect. If you threw for 4,000 yards and were 12-4 in Pittsburgh people would be ticked off because they want smash-mouth, blue-collar football."
And that is what they have with Roethlisberger, one of the toughest, most resilient quarterbacks in the game. He doesn't produce ridiculous numbers, but he doesn't have to -- not with the league's top-ranked defense suffocating opponents. Basically, he makes the right plays at the right times and keeps the Steelers on track, not committing a turnover in two playoff appearances this season.
"One of the reasons I thought Bill Cowher didn't come back (to coaching)," said Lombardi, "is that he spent a career looking for a quarterback, and he found him in Ben Roethlisberger. He didn't want to spend another career looking for the next Ben Roethlisberger."
You can understand why. In five NFL seasons Roethlisberger has been to three conference championship games and two Super Bowls. He's 58-22 as a starter, including the playoffs, and 7-2 in postseason play.
"Ultimately," said Malone, "that is how we're judged. In this era of fantasy football we all get caught up in numbers, but the bottom line is you're measured by wins. Has he had help? Absolutely. But that shouldn't detract from the fact that he makes plays that other people would not, and kudos to him."
Roethlisberger is the perfect fit for the Steelers. He is rugged. He is tough. And he knows how to win. He's not a pretty passer, but pretty passes count for zilch in January in Pittsburgh.
Not so for Arizona, which is why Fitzgerald is in the perfect spot to show off his playmaking abilities. He makes a zillion catches because the Cardinals throw a zillion passes, and the approach works. Look where it got them this season. Look where it got them in the 2004 draft.
Good thing they didn't take all that free advice.
