Philip Rivers returned from a five-year absence to provide functional quarterback play Sunday, so why not Ben Roethlisberger, a fellow passer from that fabled 2004 draft class?

Roethlisberger, after all, is a few months younger than the 44-year-old Rivers, and he threw his last pass in 2021, a full year after Rivers took what many thought was his last NFL snap.

The problem is, the all-time leading passer in Pittsburgh Steelers history has no desire to put on a uniform one more time.

“Zero chance,” Roethlisberger said Monday night.

Roethlisberger was at Acrisure Stadium to be feted as one of the newest members in the Steelers’ Hall of Honor, joining former teammates Maurkice Pouncey and Joey Porter in the 2025 class. That the ceremony coincided with Rivers’ surprising NFL return a day earlier raised the inevitable questions for Roethlisberger.

Asked whether he misses the competition, Roethlisberger reminded reporters of the weather. It was 17 degrees at kickoff.

“It’s really cold,” he said. “No, I had 18 years. I got to do it so much. I realized last night that I played 249 games. Do I come back one more for 250, a round number? No, it’s too much now. Every once in a while, I think about the fourth quarter and having the ball in my hands, but other than that, I don’t miss it.”

That doesn’t mean, however, Roethlisberger couldn’t physically match Rivers, who completed 18 of 27 passes for 120 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the Indianapolis Colts in an 18-16 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

“Right this minute, no, but if I had a little work, I could,” Roethlisberger said. “My right arm works just fine, I promise you that. It’s the rest of my body I worry about.”

Pouncey thinks his former teammate was being modest.

“I’m telling you right now, if Philip could do it, 1,000% Big Ben could do it,” he said.

Roethlisberger remains the NFL’s sixth all-time passing yardage leader. Rivers sits seventh and can overtake his former draft class mate with about 500 more yards. But Roethlisberger wondered whether it’s worth it.

“I can’t imagine being out there, but good for him,” he said. “I wonder how he felt today.”

It was fitting that Roethlisberger and Pouncey were selected for the Hall of Honor in the same year. It gave them a chance to have one more proverbial center-quarterback exchange after so many years of being joined at the hip in the Steelers offense.

“It means more than anything,” Pouncey said. “It makes it feel more special. Let’s be real. Ben made us a better player. … For me to go in with him, to ride that wave with him, you all know the greatness he brings. It’s a special moment.”

The Hall of Honor trio was feted at a dinner Sunday night, and the group was introduced at halftime Monday of the Steelers’ game against the Miami Dolphins.

Roethlisberger served as the bridge between Pouncey and Porter, the latter being the defensive enforcer of the Steelers’ Super Bowl XL run. Pouncey’s only trip to the Super Bowl after the 2010 season was cut short by injury.

“With Joey, it’s special,” Roethlisberger said. “What a football player, what a teammate, what a leader. Pounce is something special, too. The most emotional I got last night in my speech was talking about him. I could have gone on forever. He’s such a special teammate, a special person. What he means to the organization and me — he’s a brother, a real brother.”

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell attended the game, and former Steelers coach Bill Cowher posed for a photo with the inductees and other Steelers alumni. The list of former players included linebackers Levon Kirkland, Earl Holmes and James Farrior, all former teammates of Porter.

Porter cited Kirkland as the one who showed him what it was like to play the position for the Steelers.

“When you have Captain Kirk here, you know it’s real,” Porter said. “He’s one of those guys who played with a lot of the great. Once that standard was set, if you played linebacker in Pittsburgh, you’re going to be scrutinized because we have a high level of linebacker play. When guys come before you and set the mark, you don’t want to let anybody down. You try to apply the standard.”

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