While Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger very much wanted to play against his former offensive coordinator on Sunday, he will not get the chance. The Steelers ruled out their star quarterback on Friday, a few days ahead of their Sunday matchup against the Bruce Arians'-coached Arizona Cardinals.
Pittsburgh will now be without Roethlisberger for the third week in a row. Roethlisberger went down in Week 3 against the St. Louis Rams with a knee injury and his timetable for a return was around four-to-five weeks. While he felt better this week, he just wasn't ever close to suiting up for this game.
The Steelers will once again turn to Michael Vick, who helped Pittsburgh beat the San Diego Chargers last week, but collectively just hasn't looked good in any way, shape or form. Vick's presence behind center has led to a major dip in production for All Pro receiver Antonio Brown and it has allowed defenses to stack the box to try and stop Le'Veon Bell.
From a fantasy perspective, it's difficult to make a great case for starting Brown this week. He will face Patrick Peterson, who is having a strong season. If Peterson provides good coverage, there's just little chance Vick can get Brown the football enough for a big game. Vick should be avoided in both season-long and daily fantasy leagues.
Until Roethlisberger returns, Bell remains the only trustworthy option on this offense. brown meanwhile, will sink down to being a top-20 receiver with Vick under center, rather than a top-two receiver with Roethlisberger.
Fantasy owners and Steelers fans will now just hope after practicing on a limited basis this week, that perhaps Roethlisberger can return in Week 7 against the Kansas City Chiefs.