Pittsburgh Steelers to Appeal Fine for Ben Roethlisberger’s Injury Report

The Pittsburgh Steelers were recently hit with a $75,000 fine for not disclosing Ben Roethlisberger‘s elbow injury earlier this season. But the team is now fighting the fine as they will appeal it according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Roethlisberger suffered the elbow injury in Week Two against the Seattle Seahawks but the elbow was something that was bothering him before the injury according to backup QB Mason Rudolph. The Steelers had Roethlisberger on the injury report with a “non-injury related” designation.

“The Steelers believe the fine is unfair, they have an argument and now have appealed the fine to the league offices,” Schefter wrote.

As soon as Roethlisberger suffered the injury, it was determined he will need surgery on the elbow and he will be out for the rest of the 2019 season. Steelers’ head coach Mike Tomlin said in a statement, “Ben Roethlisberger had an MRI on his right elbow Sunday evening and it was determined by the Steelers’ medical team that surgery will be required. We expect the surgery will be scheduled for this week. He will be placed on our Reserve/Injured List and is out for the season.”

Towards the end of September, Roethlisberger underwent surgery on the elbow, but before that happened, he released a statement.

“I’ve been informed that I need season-ending surgery on my elbow to continue playing football at the level I expect. This is shocking and heartbreaking for me, to miss this much of a season and feel like I am letting down so many people,” he said. “I can only trust God’s plan, but I am completely determined to battle through this challenge and come back stronger than ever next season.

“The Steelers committed three years to me this offseason and I fully intend to honor my contract and reward them with championship level play. I will do all I can to support Mason and the team this season to help win games. I love this game, my teammates, the Steelers organization and fans, and I feel in my heart I have a lot left to give.”

Last week, Roethlisberger talked about his return to the field. He said he’s targeting either OTAs or minicamp, but he’s not going to rush back.

“OTAs. Minicamp. Somewhere in there,” Roethlisberger said to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette “Just taking it nice and slow, doctors’ orders. It’s all about what they say.”