Column: Roethlisberger deal all about ‘family’

Omar Khan, Dan Rooney, Mike Tomlin, Kevin Colbert and the Roethlisberger family. — DEJAN KOVACEVIC

BY DEJAN KOVACEVIC

He’s the face of the franchise, and the franchise itself is our city’s face to the rest of the world, so it’s easy to imagine that Ben Roethlisberger was anything but alone Friday when he beamed, “It’s kind of hard to contain my smile when I’m excited to be at a place like this, to be home, and to be able to be here for my whole career.”

It’s home, all right. And family. In every way.

If that ever came into question — or even just reckless rumor-mongering — then let this singular scene at the Steelers’ headquarters on the South Side dispel it once and for all.

There, as the headliners, were Roethlisberger and Art Rooney II taking turns at the press-room podium to announce the five-year extension — $99 million guaranteed, another $9 available in escalator clauses — that the team and the quarterback had achieved earlier in the afternoon. Those two haven’t always seen eye to eye. It was Rooney who ran off Bruce Arians, Roethlisberger’s beloved coordinator and good friend. It was Rooney who insisted Roethlisberger rein in his Ben-being-Ben ways and become more of a pocket passer. And yeah, it was Roethlisberger who resisted every which way but walking out, from pouting about the new playbook to sarcastically panning Todd Haley.

Families will spat. Families will reconcile.

“For us, I think it’s all about the team. It always has been,” Roethlisberger said to this topic. “That’s how it is for me. I’m sure Mike Tomlin or the Rooneys will tell you that’s what it’s about. And anytime guys stay healthy, I think it’s best for everybody.”

There to Rooney’s right was the burgeoning Roethlisberger family, wife Ashley dutifully tending to Ben Jr., 2, and Baylee, 1, both of whom looked like they’d much rather have been wreaking havoc with the place. It was a beautiful sight to behold, especially if one considers some of the sordidness attached to Roethlisberger a few years back, fairly or not. However much or little anyone thought of him then, there can’t be any dispute that he’s grown from it, that he’s a better man.

“It’s amazing how much you mature,” Roethlisberger said. “Every day, I try and embrace the responsibility and the leadership that comes with being a father, a husband, a Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback, a teammate, all those things. And I try and be the best I can be. I think this day just is another step of me being everything I can be for this organization.”

Finally, there to the right of the Roethlisberger family was Dan Rooney, the patriarch, flanked by the trio who run the Steelers on a daily basis: Mike Tomlin, Kevin Colbert and Omar Khan.

And if I can be candid here, I found myself a whole lot more consumed by how all this would affect those three guys than anyone else in the room.

To wit, my questions for Roethlisberger and Rooney …

Here’s the full press conference, if you missed it.

I could go all sappy and syrupy here. It’s so easy.

Roethlisberger’s downs in Pittsburgh have been as dramatic as his ups, and that’s saying something. He could have taken the loser’s way out long ago. He could have left for a change of life scenery, seeking a clean slate. He could have followed Arians to Arizona, seeking a continuation of his football style.

He didn’t. As he’s always done with the ball in his hands, he toughed it out, waiting on the best possible play rather than the easiest. That’s to his immense credit.

“It’s home. It’s family,” Roethlisberger replied when the tougher times were raised. “As much as my wife and kids are family, so is the Rooney family and my team and coaches. It just means a lot. I love this place. I love raising my family here. This means that I can stay here with them and raise them in such a great environment and a great city that we love so much.”

It shouldn’t go unappreciated, either, that, when NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport spread lies — and that’s what they were, so spare any euphemism, please — that Roethlisberger would demand a trade because he was dissatisfied with the state of the Steelers, Roethlisberger not only passionately, angrily denied them but also passed his team to a 17-7 record and AFC North championship since the first of those lies emerged.

“I said at that time we didn’t know where those rumors came from,” Roethlisberger said today. “It wasn’t coming from me. Mr. Rooney said it wasn’t coming from the team. A lot of you guys have been here a long time. I’ve always said this is where I want to be.”

I’ve printed this before, but it bears repeating: When I privately approached Roethlisberger around that period, he assured me — “You have my word” — that there was no truth to the reports.

He, unlike that reporter, is a man of his word.

But again, that’s fait accompli. I knew he’d stay, you knew he’d stay, and now he’s staying. And that leaves in its wake just as compelling a question: Can the Steelers win despite Roethlisberger’s contract?

See Exhibit A in Baltimore of what happens when a franchise quarterback consumes far too large a percentage of the payroll, and you’ll see the concern. When Joe Flacco signed his six-year, $120.6 million contract in March 2013, the Ravens were riding high, fresh off a second Super Bowl title, and they had zero choice but to keep their quarterback. And in the first year of that deal, in an attempt to keep a little more of that roster intact, the cap hit was only $6.8 million. But the terms soared to $14.8 million last season, $14.6 million this coming season and — sit down for this — $28.5 million, $31.2 million and $24.8 million the final three seasons.

Any wonder why the Ravens are losing free agents like rats from a sinking ship?

As of this writing, the breakdown of Roethlisberger’s contract isn’t publicly known, so I’m not in a position — beyond the responses I got from Roethlisberger and Rooney — to judge how much this contract could hinder the Steelers going forward.

But here’s what I do know: They need help, and they can’t ever go down the Baltimore road if they’re serious about getting it and keeping it.

The offense looks good. No golden, actually. As you heard Roethlisberger reply when I brought it up, he’s got pretty much every weapon a quarterback would covet and an Antonio Brown and a Le’Veon Bell, neither of which anyone else has. And now, on top of that — though buried beneath this news — the Steelers also signed DeAngelo Williams as a fine 1A to Bell in the backfield. He came at a good price, too, two years at $4 million.

The defense, though, continues to disintegrate by the day.

Colbert talked about prioritizing cornerback, but his only actions to date have been to allow Brice McCain to walk to Miami at an affordable two years and $5.5 million. The remaining possibilities are increasingly unattractive — though it sure is intriguing that old friend Keenan Lewis suddenly wants to escape the New Orleans fire sale — and the current group offers only Willie Gay, Cortez Allen and a still-not-officially signed Antwon Blake.

Colbert also talked about outside linebacker. Well, the Jason Worilds retirement leaves a glaring gap at outside linebacker, but Tennessee snapped up both of the best remaining edge rushers Friday morning in Brian Orakpo and Derrick Morgan. The Steelers had the cash for at least one of those, but they’re sitting on that, as well as the hard realization that Arthur Moats might be their starter. Or James Harrison.

And no, before you ask, neither Colbert nor Tomlin was taking questions on this day. Rooney did all the speaking on the Steelers’ behalf.

Four months and a draft remain before Latrobe, but this defense is so far behind this offense that they might as well compete in separate solar systems.

Roethlisberger turned 33 two weeks ago, and I’ve got more confidence than ever that he’ll be an efficient performer deep into his 30s. He didn’t flinch when I asked if he’d have to adjust or improve other areas to rival the older-age outputs of, say, Tom Brady or Peyton Manning: “I’ll just keep trying to improve and to stay on the football field.” He backed that up, obviously, with a 2014 in which he set career marks with 4,952 passing yards, 408 completions and a 67.1 completion percentage.

It was a wonderful season, and it’s been a wonderful career.

But talking about a seventh Lombardi while having the No. 27 pass defense and then watching it worsen … with all due respect, that’s hot air and nothing more.

The team’s ownership and its most pivotal player have done their part, by all accounts, in agreeing to this contract that both Rooney and Roethlisberger described as “mutually beneficial” and “a very quick process.” It’s time for the rest of the results to reflect similar urgency.