Are Your Steelers Still Valuable Without Big Ben?

The worst nightmare of every Pittsburgh fan (and Ben Roethlisberger owner) became a stark reality Sunday afternoon.

Everything about it screamed "season-ending". There was the sack by Mark Barron, illegal but not intentional in nature, vaguely reminiscent of similar tackles which chopped down Carson Palmer and Tom Brady long ago. We saw the obligatory shot of trainers surrounding the fallen quarterback. Then, the dreaded cart, with Big Ben aboard, a towel forlornly draped over his bowed head.

As a die-hard Steeler fan and a Roethlisberger owner in two leagues, this was like being punched in the face, then set on fire. Watching the game in a New York City bar, my initial reaction was an inappropriate shriek, followed by sheer panic. Three horrific letters popped into my head: "A-C-L". Then came the absurd realization that Michael freaking Vick was going in, and the indisputable truth that, Big Ben or not, there was still a game to win.

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A friend of mine summed it up best: "Good thing we're at a bar, huh?"

Indeed.  Jack Daniels calmed my jangled nerves until, by the grace of God (assuming God is also invested in Big Ben's knee), relatively good news came down. An injury which initially seemed season-ending was only a sprained MCL which will shelve Roethlisberger for four-to-six weeks. The Steelers are left with a talent-laden offense led by a gigantic question mark at quarterback.

In the words of Austin Powers, "what does it all mean, Basil?"

Well, for Big Ben owners, it probably means general chaos at quarterback. Here are the top available quarterbacks in my 12-team standard league: Joe Flacco, Derek Carr, Colin Kaepernick, Teddy Bridgewater, Jameis Winston, Blake Bortles, Nick Foles. Whichever way you want to slice it, this is like dating a supermodel one day and going home with a hunchback the next. Personally,  at gunpoint (or in the event of this injury to Big Ben, same thing), I'd take Flacco or Carr from that list.

While you may be tempted to slot in Mike Vick, let's remember that he was the Madden cover boy a whopping 12 Maddens ago. This ain't your older brother's Vick. He is injury-prone, inaccurate, and surely not as lightning-fast as he once was. While a quarterback capable of producing rushing points can be invaluable in fantasy, I'd recommend a firm "wait-and-see" approach before even considering Vick as a Roethlisberger replacement.

Vick's saving grace is the loaded arsenal of offensive weapons he inherits. Owners of those guys --  most prominently Le'Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, and Martavis Bryant -- will also feel the reverberations of Roethlisberger's absence.

Bell is the only player who may actually benefit fantasy-wise from this situation. Erratic though he may be, Vick can still drive passes downfield as evidenced by his 63-yard preseason hook-up with Bryant. That means opposing defenses will still need to account for Pittsburgh's potent receivers, neutralizing their ability to stack the box against Le'Veon.  Bell will also likely see an uptick in totes, in addition to serving as a security blanket out of the backfield for Vick. He remains a top-tier option at his position through Ben's injury.

The same can be said for Antonio Brown, who is simply a model of consistency and production unmatched by his peers. His 5-50 streak has reached 35 consecutive games, an NFL record. Brown has followed up his staggering 1,698-yard effort in 2014 with a 29/436/2 stat-line thus far this season. Of course, no receiver can lose their quarterback and maintain the exact same level of productivity. Brown is too damn good to sit, ever, under any circumstances, but his owners should temper their expectations from "otherworldly" to merely "very good" until Big Ben returns. Regardless, Brown and Bell are arguably the best players at their respective positions; as such, they should always start for you. Period.

It is Pittsburgh's peripheral options that will largely lose their fantasy value in Roethlisberger's absence. Martavis Bryant is set to return from his four-week "sabbatical" in Week Five. Bryant has vast home-run potential, and I wouldn't be surprised if Vick eventually finds him for a 70-yard touchdown,  but I also wouldn't advise starting him until he establishes himself as a consistent target under Vick. Until then, he is a little too "boom-or-bust" for my liking. Markus Wheaton and Darius Heyward-Bey become essentially useless, even as low-risk pickups in deeper leagues. Tight end Heath Miller has seen only five targets in two games since garnering 11 in Week One, and whatever fantasy value he had was derived from his rapport with Big Ben. Look elsewhere if your in need of a tight end.

In a cruel twist of fate from the scheduling gods, Pittsburgh faces a three-day turnaround to Thursday's tilt against the reeling Ravens. Vick has been a Steeler for little more than a month. He admitted last season when pressed into duty for Geno Smith that he hadn't exactly immersed himself in the Jets' playbook during his short time with the team. Now, he has been handed an opportunity to pilot a team that is a legitimate Super Bowl contender at full-strength. It is incumbent on him to keep owners of Bell, Brown and Bryant well-fed during Roethlisberger's absence. He may even find himself in a few fantasy line-ups if he can locate the fountain of youth for a month here.

He damn well better. Or I'm going back to that bar.

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