Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers could explore trade talks in offseason

The Pittsburgh Steelers could use a high pick in the 2014 NFL Draft to address their quarterback position. Current starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will be 32 years old when next season starts and he is reportedly unhappy with the Steelers organization.

Pittsburgh has struggled greatly throughout the first half of the regular season and there have been reports of Roethlisberger having issues with offensive coordinator Todd Haley since he came to town, so it appears that the team’s rebuilding phase could soon kick in to full swing with an offseason trade that would ship their two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback out of town.

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network passed along the report on NFL GameDay Morning:

In fact, Rapoport said the team explored trade offers last season. A team like the Arizona Cardinals or Minnesota Vikings could make a lot of sense.

Of course, Roethlisberger has a hefty contract and he isn’t getting any younger, so the team will need to sort through trade offers to see if they can get enough compensation in return to make the move worthwhile.

If there was ever a year to use a high draft pick on a rookie quarterback, the Steelers would be picking the right year.

With guys like Teddy Bridgewater, Marcus Mariota, Johnny Manziel, Zach Mettenberger and A.J. McCarron all likely to be available, the Steelers could find their quarterback of the future in the first-round of next year’s draft.

Whether or not an actual trade or the trade talks begin in the offseason remains to be seen, but it looks like that is the direction we are heading.