When Big Ben Roethlisberger sent a 14 yard pass to Antonio Brown for a first down against the NY Jets in the last minute of the AFC Championship, he also sent his Pittsburgh Steelers to yet another Super Bowl appearance. But besides those living in the "Steel" city or surrounding areas, who is that happy to see him in the Super Bowl?? Two totally different stories are meeting up in the biggest game in American sports this Sunday, one told about Big Ben and the other one about Aaron Rodgers.
Ben Roethlisberger started out as the likable, unknown, underdog, who took his licks and hits and got right back up. He came out of a smaller conference school, Miami of Ohio, and is now in his third Super Bowl with the Steelers. But unless you bleed gold and black, rooting for him is really hard to do this year. Ben's off the field issues from his past have gotten him in some trouble, he was accused of sexually assaulting two different women in two different states and he nearly killed himself when he crashed his motorcycle in 2006. Even though the allegations against him never became convictions, he was still suspended by the league for four games this past season.
Aaron Rodgers has also been in and out of the spotlight off the field, but for completely different reasons. Unlike Big Ben, Rodgers had no control nor did he partake in the attention he got from the media outside of his athletic performance. Rodgers just happen to be the backup to the one time golden boy, three time retiree, Brett Favre. Each time Rodgers was about embark on his own journey as the starting QB for the Green Bay Packers, good old Favre would interrupt it by either coming out of retirement and playing somewhere else or by sending sexually explicit text messages to Jets cheerleaders. Each time Rodgers and the Packers tried to move past the Favre issue, Mr. Wrangler Jeans would do something that the media had to cover and Rodgers would sit in his shadow for a little bit longer. This year however, the distractions were put to rest and Aaron Rodgers and the Packers have written a new book, with a prologue that includes Lombardi, Starr, Holmgren and Favre, but it's first chapter is titled "Super Bowl XLV: the post-Favre road to victory".
On a day when NFL and non-NFL fans will all be watching, as well as billions of dollars flowing through the ads shown during the Super Bowl, is Big Ben the guy you want to have triumph over Aaron Rodgers?? It is really a character assessment of sorts, because both QBs have enormous talent, but rooting for one or the other is a hard decision when you're not a true fan of either team. Big Ben has won two titles already, but his actions away from football have tainted his legacy a bit. Is a guy who assaults women, someone that people are going to root for to win?? Maybe... because Americans don't seem to care too much about what athletes do off the field anymore, as long as they win on the field. There is though, a feel good story surrounding the Packers this year. They overcame a slew of injuries, including Rodgers himself and the hangover from Brett Favre is over now, thanks to his geriatric performance he gave playing in Minnesota and the clear decision he will make to finally retire. Either way, it will all be decided on the field in Dallas this Sunday, who will raise the trophy named after the iconic, Green Bay coach from NYC, Vince Lombardi. What won't be decided, is who really deserves it?
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