BEN ROETHLISBERGER
Quarterback

For Clark Kent, it was the telephone booth, and when he emerged from it after changing clothes, he became Superman and was ready to save the day. For Ben Roethlisberger, it was nothing quite so dramatic, and there was no change of clothes required. The process simply involved exchanging a baseball cap for his helmet, and then the short trip from the sideline to the huddle was all that was required to go about the business of saving the day for the Steelers.

Just one week after spraining his foot in a victory over Oakland, Roethlisberger had healed sufficiently to participate in enough practice sessions during the week to earn the status as the backup quarterback to the game's starter, Landry Jones, with Mike Vick being inactive. Roethlisberger as the backup didn't last very long, because eight offensive snaps into the game, Jones sprained an ankle and turned things over to Superm … er, Roethlisberger.

From there it was pretty smooth sailing to a 30-9 victory over the Browns that raised the Steelers' record to 6-4, with Roethlisberger completing 22-of-33 for 379 yards, with three touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 123.2. There also were four pass interference penalties called on the Browns that gained another 141 yards, and so Roethlisberger's impact on the Steelers passing attack was in the neighborhood of 520 yards.

Roethlisberger is the Steelers Digest Player of the Week.

Also considered were Martavis Bryant, who caught six passes for 178 yards and a touchdown; Antonio Brown, who caught 10 passes for 139 yards, with two touchdowns and a two-point conversion, plus an incredibly athletic front-flip end zone celebration in which he landed on his feet following his second touchdown – try that in a helmet and shoulder pads; Mike Mitchell, who had five tackles, an interception near the goal line, and two passes defensed; Lawrence Timmons, who had 10 tackles, including two for loss, and one of the six sacks; Will Allen, who had a team-high 11 tackles and a forced fumble; Cam Heyward, who had three tackles, including two for loss, and a sack; Ryan Shazier, who had six tackles, including one for loss, and a sack; and Jarvis Jones, who had two tackles, a sack that he split with Arthur Moats, and a fumble recovery.