Big Ben: 'I care about record-breaking Super Bowl wins' more than contract
Count Ben Roethlisberger as disinterested in the league-wide quarterback competition to become the game's highest-paid player.
"I care about record-breaking Super Bowl wins and things like that - that's more important to me," Roethlisberger told ESPN from his football pro camp Sunday in Pittsburgh.
The 36-year-old Pittsburgh Steelers signal-caller enters a 15th season in 2018 with just two years remaining on a contract that will have him carry cap hits of $23.2 million in each year, according to Over the Cap. The deal was originally signed in 2015.
Roethlisberger, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Steelers, ranks 11th among quarterbacks with an average annual value of $21.85 million. Matt Ryan's recently-signed extension with the Atlanta Falcons leads all QBs at $30 million in average value on a five-year pact.
Though Roethlisberger had previously hinted at retirement, he recently reversed course and said he plans to play "three-to-five more years."
He's confident his contract will be able to get worked out at that time.
"I have two years on my contract. I'm not going to be one to sit here and worry about my contract," said Roethlisberger. "That's not my job. My job is to play football. I'll let my representation, the Steelers worry about all that stuff. To me, it's all about going out and playing now. I think there are a lot more, maybe a lot more important people who need to get their deals done now. For me to do it two years out, if it doesn't make sense for the team, I'm not going to sit here and worry about it."
The Steelers rank 29th in available cap space for 2018 at nearly $5.5 million.