Ben Roethlisberger denies report that he played with cracked ribs in Patriots game

Big Ben finished 2 of 34 for 235 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions

Two weeks ago, Ben Roethlisberger missed most of the second half of the Raiders game because he suffered a rib injury that took some time to evaluate. Backup quarterback Josh Dobbs was under center for the first four drives after the break and the Steelers' offense came to a grinding halt.

But on Pittsburgh's fifth series of the final half, Roethlisberger returned. Trailing 21-17, he led a six-play, 75 yard drive -- all Big Ben completions -- that culminated in JuJu Smith-Schuster's second touchdown of the day. Roethlisberger then led a last-second trip into field goal range to tie the game before Chris Boswell honked the attempt as time expired.

The Steelers left Oakland with plenty of questions, chief among them: Why was Roethlisberger on the sidelines so long. Turns out, there was an issue with the X-Ray equipment and that played a role in getting Roethlisberger back on the field. Days later, NFL.com's Ian Rapoport reported that the Steelers quarterback had suffered cracked ribs.

This, it turns out, is news to Roethlisberger.

"I have no idea where that came from," Roethlisberger said during his weekly radio segment on 93.7, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "My wife texted me before the game and said, 'Did you hear about this?' I'm in the locker room. I don't know where that guy gets his information from, so we're not going to give him any credence on this show."

Roethlisberger played on Sunday against the Patriots and didn't appear to be favoring his ribs. He finished 22 of 34 for 235 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions in Pittsburgh's 17-10 win that kept them atop the AFC North. The quarterback credited team doctors with getting him ready to face the Pats.

"At the end of the day, you trust in the doctors and what they tell you to do," he continued. "We're all dealing with a lot of pain this time of the year."

The Steelers face their biggest test of the season on Sunday when they travel to New Orleans to face the Saints.

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