Ben Roethlisberger Shares Shocking Prediction for Steelers Rookie
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steeelers rookie running back Kaleb Johnson had his welcome to the NFL moment against the Seattle Seahawks. His blunder during a kick return cost the team seven points at a crucial moment, and kickstarted the loss in Week 2.
Following the game, the Steelers rookie discussed how he needed to be better. It’s true, but that acknowledgement isn’t enough. Head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters that it was a safe bet that Johnson would no longer field kicks, at least for the next few weeks while he earns his way back. But according to former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, that mistake may have cost Johnson his spot on the roster for the entire 2025 season.
“After last week, not getting much action, and this week, that happening,” he said on his Footbahlin’ podcast. “Unless injuries or something happen, we may not see him again the rest of the year.”
Roethlisberger did also posit that while he’s not in the coach’s good graces, he can still salvage his rookie campaign. It won’t be easy, but Big Ben believes Johnson could work his way out of the doghouse.
“There’s a chance,” he said. “I don’t want to just call it a doghouse, but it’s tough. It’s a tough place, a tough situation.”
Johnson was a lightly featured player in both weeks to start the season. Outside of his kick-off return duties, he played a small handful of offensive snaps. He registered just two offensive snaps in both Week 1 against the New York Jets and Week 2 against the Seahawks. Stuck behind the tandem of Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell, there’s no obvious place for the Iowa product to steal more reps and snaps.
Now that he is no longer a special teams contributor, it’s hard to envision what value he brings to the Steelers. They have a need for more rushing help, but so far Tomlin has shown no trust or faith in him to bring that help. They have a need to be better on special teams, but having the inexperienced Johnson back there is clearly to his and the team’s detriment.
What Tomlin maintained at his most recent press conference was a belief in his rookie tailback. While he has to make the difficult choice to remove him from the special teams unit, Tomlin told reporters that he loves the hardworking mentality and talent he brings despite the setback.
“I believe in his talent,” he said. “He’s a sharp young man. He’s a hard worker. And, so, you leave the light on for him to give him an opportunity to move on from it.. But he has to do that. He has to display that with his daily work and he’s got to earn himself back in a position to be a participant.”
The next few weeks will likely see very few of Kaleb Johnson. But since he was the team’s third round pick in 2025, he’s bound to return at some point during the season. Hopefully this wake up call can help get him back on the right path and contributing to the Steelers this season.
Jets Trade Pitch Delivers 6-Foot-6 Young QB With Upside
The New York Jets have a quarterback problem, and the Philadelphia Eagles could help them solve it.
Heavy’s Max Dible proposed a trade idea between the two teams that could benefit everybody.
Jets receive: quarterback Tanner McKee
Eagles receive: a 2027 third-round pick
McKee, 25, stands at 6-foot-6 and tips the scales at 231 pounds. He entered the league as the No. 188 overall pick in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Analyst Explains Thought Process of This Jets-Eagles Trade Idea
“The Jets signed Justin Fields to a two-year deal, but it’s essentially a one-year contract for all intents and purposes should New York decide it wants out after 2025. Aaron Glenn brought Fields in because of his athleticism, which is the one thing McKee doesn’t really have. So he won’t have the mobility and playmaking Fields does when plays break down,” Dible said.
“What McKee has already shown is a better grasp of NFL passing concepts and a better ability to execute them than Fields, who has had vastly more opportunity and experience. The Jets have the advantage of being in the AFC, which might entice the Eagles more than deals with the Rams, Vikings, or their in-state rivals, the Steelers (even though Pittsburgh is also an AFC team). New York might be picking high enough to find a young signal-caller of their own in the 2026 draft, but a bird in the hand and all that… might make McKee worth it even at a third-round price,” Dible added.
McKee Has Garnered a Lot of Buzz Among NFL People
Despite humble beginnings as a day three pick, McKee is buzzing amongst key NFL people.
“McKee, 25, is the Eagles’ No. 2 quarterback. He’s become so valuable to the team that they traded last year’s backup to promote him. He’s on his way to becoming a future starter in the NFL,” Zach Berman of The Athletic wrote in a column posted on August 21, 2025.
If he is to become a future starting QB, it likely won’t be for the Eagles. Jalen Hurts, 27, is currently Philadelphia’s starting quarterback. Hurts is currently the No. 11 highest-paid QB in the NFL with an annual salary of $51 million, per Over The Cap.
“There are at least 10 teams in the NFL who would be in the playoffs if Tanner McKee was their starting QB. I’m not even joking. The kid is LEGIT,” beat reporter Nick Faria of Jets X-Factor posted on social media in August.
There are at least 10 teams in the NFL who would be in the playoffs if Tanner McKee was their starting QB.
I’m not even joking. The kid is LEGIT.
— Nick Faria (@Nick_Faria1720) August 8, 2025
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ESPN’s Benjamin Solak created a graphic on August 7 listing all 32 teams in the NFL and revealed whether McKee “would start for your team” in his opinion.
Solak put the Jets in the “without question” category of his graphic.
Would Tanner McKee start for your team? pic.twitter.com/z9i9lDO7MO
— Benjamin Solak (@BenjaminSolak) August 8, 2025
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The Former Stanford Product Has Shown Flashes
McKee appeared in two games during the 2024 season with one start. He finished with a 66.7% completion percentage, threw four touchdowns to zero picks, and totaled 323 passing yards.
The former Stanford product only appeared in one preseason game this offseason, but he dazzled.
McKee went 20-of-25 (80% completion percentage), threw for 252 passing yards, had three total touchdowns, and didn’t have an interception.
McKee Would Be a Fun Dart Throw for Jets Coaching Staff
The Jets don’t know if they have a franchise quarterback on their roster. Justin Fields has been inconsistent, Tyrod Taylor is 36 years of age, and undrafted free agent Brady Cook is on the practice squad.
McKee has shown flashes that are worth developing. He still has two years left of cheap team control on his $4 million contract. McKee is scheduled to be a free agent in 2027.
Overcoming Unbelievable Odds
McKee is a cancer survivor.
“Sitting in the hospital at age 16. That’s when his mother noticed a new dark mole on his hairline with suspiciously uneven boundaries. They scheduled an appointment with a dermatologist. Six moles were removed from his back, chest, and forehead for biopsy. The mole on his forehead came back positive for melanoma,” Berman revealed in a column for The Athletic.
“McKee underwent the procedure to test the borders of the melanoma and to see if it had spread to his lymph nodes,” Berman explained.
“Even if the cancer did not spread, another risk existed. The lymph nodes that required removal were close to a nerve that affected his throwing motion. If there had been any damage to the nerve during the procedure, McKee’s quarterback career could have been in peril,” Berman said. “The procedure was successful. The cancer had not spread. The nerve was unaffected.”
