Former Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski is the best in the business at breaking down the technical aspect of playing the quarterback position, and in an appearance on ESPN Radio, Jaworski raved about the Super Bowl performance of Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.From my own seat at Raymond James Stadium I thought Roethlisberger was throwing the ball away when he made the game-winning pass to Santonio Holmes, but as Jaworski noted in a post-Super Bowl appearnce on Mike and Mike in the Morning (listen here, via Sports Radio Interviews), the ball ended up going into the perfect place.
"It was a very tight throw," Jaworski said. "A terrific throw, and most guys wouldn't attempt that throw. ... The accuracy was just uncanny. There was one spot to put the football."
Jaworski also noted something else that needs to be discussed in evaluating the way Roethlisberger played against the Cardinals on Sunday: He was simply masterful at avoiding the pass rush and getting rid of the ball under pressure. Jaworski noted that in situations when most quarterbacks would look to run and just try to pick up a couple of yards with their feet, Roethlisberger stays cool under pressure and looks to pick up 10 or 20 yards with his arm.
"His vision is amazing, and the one thing you notice about Ben, if you look at him, his eyes are down the field as he moves around," Jaworski said. "His initial movement is to get out of the pocket to get rid of the football. We see some quarterbacks break the pocket and they're just looking to run. Ben is just uncanny at finding people downfield. It's an amazing talent that he has."
Jaworski's breakdown of Roethlisberger's play is a reminder that Big Ben is not just a game manager but one of the most talented passers in football, a great quarterback whose Super Bowl XLIII performance was one for the ages, and who has many outstanding performances ahead of him.
