PHOENIX -- Multiple former Steelers have taken shots at Ben Roethlisberger in recent weeks, from Antonio Brown to Le'Veon Bell, Emmanuel Sanders and Josh Harris. So have members of the national media.
But Roethlisberger has not responded to any of it. And for good reason, according to Kevin Colbert.
"Ben is an unquestionable top quarterback in this league," Colbert said Sunday here on the first day of the annual NFL Meetings. "He’s a Hall of Fame quarterback. He’s won Super Bowls. He’s comfortable with that. We’re comfortable with that. We’re always going to support him in that role."
And that means letting things slide off his back. Colbert doesn't expect Roethlisberger to respond to the criticism in any way but going about his business on the field, despite comments questioning his leadership and interactions in the locker room.
"I don’t think that will bother him," Colbert said. "I think Ben is very comfortable with who he is, what he’s done and what he’s going to do. I don’t think it will affect him. Each and every year, he’s trying to prove who he is. He’ll have no other agenda than trying to win a Super Bowl."
Colbert also doesn't care about the criticism directed his way for the return the team got in the trade with the Raiders for Brown.
The star receiver was shipped to the Raiders for third- and fifth-round draft picks, which are 66th and 140th overall. A few days later, the Giants traded Odell Beckham Jr. to the Browns for first- and third-round picks and safety Jabrill Peppers.
"We were excited to get the third and the fifth, especially where those picks are in those respective rounds," Colbert said. "Now we have four picks in the top 83 and 10 picks in the top 219. On average, in rounds 1 through 3, we’re picking once every 21 picks. We’re in much better shape draft-wise than we were prior to that."
It's a good thing Colbert feels that way, because coming off a 9-6-1 season and having traded away arguably their best player in Brown, the Steelers have some remaining work to do this offseason if they hope to challenge for a Super Bowl in 2019.
Outside free agents Steven Nelson, Mark Barron and Donte Moncrief were signed to help bolster the cornerback, linebacker and receiver positions, respectively. But the team is still short at receiver, something Colbert admits.
Colbert noted that with those signings, the team has 51 players under contract who were either on their own roster or starters for another team in 2018. But the Steelers still have needs.
"We know who our basic folks are," Colbert said. "The receiver corps will kind of come together because you don’t have Antonio Brown now."
After the trades of Brown and offensive tackle Marcus Gilbert to the Cardinals for a sixth-round draft pick, the Steelers now have 10 overall selections in next month's draft. That is enough draft capital to move up in a number of rounds to acquire players the Steelers have targeted. But the Steelers also have moved up in the first round of the draft just two times in Colbert's tenure as GM, which began in 2000. The first was in 2003, when the team moved up 11 spots to select safety Troy Polamalu. The second time came in 2006, when the team slid up seven spots to acquire receiver Santonio Holmes.
Finding trade partners and then settling on compensation packages can be the tricky part, especially since those trades typically aren't finalized until draft day. And even then, it often doesn't happen until a team is on the clock for their pick.
"We understand that when we’re making a trade with a team, they may tell us, ‘That doesn’t match the value.’" Colbert said. "That’s their decision. You go back to when we traded up for Troy, we went up from 27 to 16 and we gave up a third and a sixth. When we traded up for Santonio Holmes, I think we traded up from 32 to 25. We gave up a third and fourth and people said, ‘You gave up too much.’ My response would be that he did make the catch to win a Super Bowl. I think in any year, that value is what you decide it to be."
Colbert said the team will explore all of those options, while also keeping the door open for potential additional veteran acquisitions, as well.
"We’re at a good place right now, we feel," Colbert said. "But something could happen, in a week or two, maybe there’s a player that wasn’t available at this point. We always have to be ready for that."
One thing that could hinder that is the team's cap situation. Per the latest reports from the NFLPA, the Steelers have just $3.6 million of salary cap space remaining.
According to Colbert, the team is currently shopping safety Morgan Burnett in a trade, but if that doesn't happen, he will be released. That would save the Steelers $3.6 million in cap space, or $5 million if he's released with a June 1 designation.
Roethlisberger's eventual contract extension -- on which talks remain ongoing -- also could offer some potential cap savings. Roethlisberger, 37, has one season remaining on a deal that counts $23.2 million against the Steelers' cap in 2019.
"It’s probably his last contract as an NFL player, so it’s significant," Colbert said. "It’s significant for him and it’s significant for us, especially since we’re in a different dynamic with the cap because we don’t have a couple of players with us. We have to make sure it makes sense for both sides."
