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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger officially announced his retirement from the National Football League on Thursday morning. The 18-year veteran quarterback released a video on his official Twitter page.
Surrounded by his wife and children, he read a letter to the fans, the team and the league, thanking everyone for the greatest years of his life and how fortunate he was to play for the Steelers.
Not only did he have a long NFL career, he also had a lucrative one that along with paying off in salary also brought incentives as he achieved career milestones along the way, leaving no doubt that a Hall of Fame induction is next in his story.
Ben Roethlisberger career earnings
The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted quarterback Ben Roethlisberger out of the University of Miami, Ohio, in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft. The draft class ended up being one with three of the longest tenured NFL quarterbacks, alongside Eli Manning (16 years) and Phillip Rivers (17 years).
The Pittsburgh Steelers originally signed their quarterback on a six-year deal worth $22.26 million and an additional $17.73 million in possible incentives.
In March 2008, after already winning one Super Bowl, Big Ben was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers on a contract extension, although he had two more years on his original contract. He was re-signed on an eight-year deal worth an impressive $102 million. He and the Pittsburgh Steelers then went on to win another Lombardi Trophy that season.
In March 2015, Roethlisberger signed another five-year extension to remain with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The new deal was said to be worth $87.4 million.
He reworked his contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers before the 2021 NFL season, which led many to believe that he was going for one last season with the team in hopes of winning it all. Determination and a hard fought battle led the Pittsburgh Steelers, who had a 9 percent chance of making the playoffs, into the postseason. But they were defeated by the Kansas City Chiefs in the Wild Card round, which ended up being the veteran quarterback's last game as the Steelers quarterback.
In his 18 seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Big Ben is said to have made well above $200 million in his storied NFL career (although incentives and other bonuses aren't exact). He has been able to do so with just one team, which is a rare accomplishment in the world of professional sports.
