Tim Benz: Art Rooney II's Steelers have been stuck in the middle in recent years. The team's decision on a new QB can't be

With Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger officially announcing his retirement Thursday, attention can focus even more squarely on who his replacement will be.

The voices of general manager Kevin Colbert and head coach Mike Tomlin will weigh most heavily on the discussions. Perhaps those of Colbert’s potential replacements (Brandon Hunt and Omar Khan), too. Maybe even some feedback from the offensive coaches and veteran players will be considered.

Heaven knows we are all giving our opinions in media and fan circles.

But this decision likely hinges most on the thoughts of team owner Art Rooney II. Unfortunately, I have no earthly clue which way he is leaning. And my guess is we won’t find out much before free agency, the draft or maybe even opening day.

Unless Rooney II suddenly has an out-of-body experience at his annual season-ending pow-wow with local beat writers, he’s not going to make any earth-shattering public decree about which way the Steelers are leaning.

Even following recent years of repeated January disappointment, the most newsworthy mission statement we’ve gotten out of that interview session is that the Steelers need to “be a team that can be more consistent running the football.”

A hot take, indeed. Still working on that one. But at least Najee Harris is in town now. So, baby steps.

Such is Rooney II’s personality, and such is the way he, his father and his grandfather have done business while owning the team. Preferring to grant authority to the coaches and personnel staff.

Well, unless we were talking about the 2004 draft. That’s when it came down to possibly selecting a quarterback with Roethlisberger still on the board at No. 11. When Rooney II’s father, Dan, nudged the arrow toward Big Ben and away from big guard Shawn Andrews out of Arkansas.

That worked out pretty well for the franchise and Roethlisberger. Maybe not so much for Andrews. But, hey, he did make two Pro Bowls with the Eagles. That’s not all bad.

The question becomes, does Rooney II get involved to that degree now that, 18 years later, a quarterback quandary is present with the team once more?

This time around, it may not be a draft-day intervention like the one that allegedly occurred in ‘04. Rooney will have to make his preferred course of action — or inaction — known much earlier with names such as Aaron Rodgers, Derek Carr, Russell Wilson and Jimmy Garoppolo all spinning on the annual offseason quarterback carousel.

Much like how Rooney will likely couch his public comments concerning the quarterback vacancy with writers in the coming days, I’d expect a similar measured tone with his football staff.

In neither setting do I anticipate a steadfast “Mason Rudolph is our guy” declaration. Nor would I expect a Khrushchev-esque directive, banging a cleat from the equipment room on his desk while shouting “Get me Aaron Rodgers!” or “Draft me Kenny Pickett!”

That said, Rooney could — as his father described the 2004 draft events — “steer the conversation in the direction of” one outcome or another.

If the owner truly wants to hand the keys of the castle to Rudolph or have him battle it out in training camp with Haskins, Rooney can certainly let that be known.

I guess.

If he wants the Steelers to be active in trade talks for Rodgers, Wilson or Carr, he can (and I think, should) tell Colbert to come up with some proposals.

If he doesn’t want the threat of a Dan Marino 2.0 scenario to hang over his franchise for the next 15 years, he can express that desire to Colbert so that the front office can perhaps engineer a trade up the board on draft day if Pickett is within reach.

My issue is, Rooney II is so rarely revealing on matters such as these, it’s tough to tell which way he’s leaning. How committed is he to one direction or another? With the half-in, half-out state of a rebuild that the Steelers are in right now, being stuck in the middle isn’t a good thing.

Especially when the starting quarterback and the general manager are likely to be new by the time September 2022 comes around.

Rooney II has been a part of the family business in front office capacity since 1989. He saw the myriad of failed solutions between Terry Bradshaw and Roethlisberger firsthand. From Bubby to Tommy Gun, with every Kent Graham and Mike Tomczak you can rattle off in between.

So, having just completed an 11th straight year without a Super Bowl trip (and fifth without a playoff win), Rooney may not want to enter an era of quarterback uncertainty. Especially when former Pro Bowlers are on the market and only eight teams in football have more salary cap space than the Steelers do right now.

Conversely, though, in that swath of time in between Bradshaw and Big Ben, from 1984-2003, the Steelers won their division eight times, went to the playoffs 10 times, won nine playoff games and played in five AFC title games and one Super Bowl.

Therefore, Rooney might not remember that stretch of time in the “Pittsburgh quarterback desert” being quite as arid as some fans and media types portray it.

When Rooney’s father drafted Roethlisberger, he was 72. Only three years older than what his son is now. Fortunately, he got to see Roethlisberger play the first 12 years of his career.

At 69 and after a decade of minimal postseason success, Art Rooney II may not want to put off many more seasons before he takes a swing at getting another franchise quarterback in the building.

It doesn’t appear the Steelers have one in waiting. At least at this stage of the game, it doesn’t appear there will be such a candidate at pick No. 20 on the draft board in April. Plus, it’s never been the Steelers way to tank a season in an attempt to position themselves for a top 10 pick the following year.

Lately, attendance and television ratings aren’t as good as they normally are in Pittsburgh. Would any of those issues be a catalyst for Rooney to “encourage” Colbert and Tomlin to make a strong move in free agency, the draft or the trade market?

That’s what I’d do. We’ll find out when Rooney speaks in the coming days.

Or we won’t. Either way, what Rooney says publicly is a lot less important than what he’s thinking.

But at a certain point, what might’ve been thought of as impatience in previous years, starts to become prudent. I think this franchise is at that point. Hopefully, its owner agrees.