After passing his latest test, Big Ben is passing again.
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger met with doctors in Los Angeles on Friday and was cleared to begin throwing for the first time since September.
"It was a good report," Roethlisberger said, per Ron Cook of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I got to bypass the tennis ball throwing for a month and go right to the football. Still going to be about 2.5-3 months until I get total clearance from doc but we are doing good!"
The Steelers on Saturday posted a five-second clip on Twitter of their franchise QB lightly throwing a pigskin in a gym. The milestone comes five months after he had his right elbow operated on.
"It felt amazing to throw," he said. "It was hard to hold the smile in. Two more throwing sessions while I'm out here in California and then headed back to the 'Burgh."
Roethlisberger played just two games last year before suffering the season-ending injury to his throwing arm. It marked the first time in his 16-year career he didn't appear in at least 11 games. The Steelers have made it clear in recent days they don't anticipate the situation to linger into the 2020 season, with coach Mike Tomlin asserting Big Benwill be their starter in Week 1.
"I have no hesitation, and I base that opinion on my experience and relationship with him and being around him for the number of years that I have," Tomlin said. "This guy is the ultimate competitor. He's dropped the gauntlet down, he's made a statement that he's coming back and I look forward to watching him answer that challenge."