Keys to Steelers' car now firmly in Roethlisberger's hands

TAMPA, Fla. - Ben Roethlisberger was along for the ride, and he knows it.

Some teams win a Super Bowl because of their quarterback, the Pittsburgh Steelers managed not to lose one in Detroit three years ago despite Big Ben's self-described bad game.

Tom Brady, he wasn't.

As nervous as a teenager taking his driver's test, Roethlisberger was 9 of 21 with 2 interceptions and a 22.6 passer rating. He was so ineffective, the Steelers needed a wide receiver, Antwaan Randle El, to throw the pivotal touchdown pass as they beat Seattle 21-10.

Roethlisberger became the youngest quarterback to win a Super Bowl at age 23, but he was as much relieved as he was happy. Not long after, the mood of a player better known for his competitiveness than his perfectly placed spirals began to change.

"I obviously got a little bit upset I didn't play so well, I let the guys down and I didn't help the team win the game," Roethlisberger said Tuesday, a three-deep crowd huddled around his Super Bowl media day podium. "It fuels the fire that you want to come out and play a better game the next time. You have to get over the initial hoopla, the flash, the lights and just make it a game."

Just a game.

There's no such thing to Roethlisberger, who is such a competitor that he rarely holds the door open for someone because he doesn't want anyone - sometimes, even a date - beating him outside.

A friendly game of cards, a swat of the ping-ping paddle, a determined dribble of the basketball - almost anything sets off Big Ben, the man who refuses to lose. So imagine what a football game does.

"Ben needs to win," said defensive end Brett Keisel, one of his best friends on the team. "I could be joking around, playing basketball, we could be playing H-O-R-S-E, and all of a sudden he wants to bet. When he bets, he just has this face, this look that comes over him that he's going to win. Me, being the smart guy I am, I never bet."

But Roethlisberger does on occasion. He was seen with friends celebrating his birthday last year at some of Las Vegas' more expensive betting outlets, not long after signing a new contract guaranteeing him $36 million. Still, he believes in sharing the wealth.

During an off weekend in November, he took his offensive linemen to Chicago for an all-expenses-paid weekend. He treats them to dinner regularly, doing so again Monday night at a Tampa steakhouse - a team-building gesture that ignores the 46 sacks, the shoulder injury and concussion he absorbed this season.

That's why Keisel and some other teammates say Roethlisberger's near-fanatical will to win might be what sets him apart from most other quarterbacks. Roethlisberger has led 18 comebacks in the fourth quarter or later that won or tied a game, five this season.

"I hate to lose. I hate being second," Roethlisberger said. "When it comes down to it, I want the ball in my hands and I want to win the game."

And which NFL quarterback won the most games by age 26? Brady? Dan Marino? John Elway? Joe Montana? No, Roethlisberger, with 51. In a few days, he could join only Brady by winning a second Super Bowl before he turns 27.

And this Super Bowl is one journey Roethlisberger can't wait to take, especially now that he's driving.

"The year we were in the Super Bowl we had great players. We had Alan Faneca. We had Jerome Bettis, a great mix of guys," wide receiver Hines Ward said. "Now it's all Ben's huddle. He takes precedence in that huddle. All eyes are on him. We'll go as far as he takes us."