As the clock ticks for Ben Roethlisberger to be a first ballot Hall of Famer, will Canton be calling?
The city of Pittsburgh has been “on the clock” for the upcoming NFL Draft for a lengthy period of time. Now, former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has become a clock watcher himself as his “Countdown to Canton” is underway. Roethlisberger’s clock has plenty of ticks left until it hits all goose eggs in January of 2027.
Super Bowl LXI week is when the hype, anticipation, skepticism and drama culminate with the decision by the Pro Football Hall of Fame voting committee on the fate of one of Pittsburgh’s favorite signal-callers. Sports insiders around the NFL have believed Roethlisberger is the proverbial shoe-in as a first-ballot nominee. However, a vast majority of NFL gurus think the road could get a little rocky as the voting process changed the last few years.
Two years ago the Hall of Fame’s voting procedure changed with the emphasis on the Coach, Contributor and Seniors Blue Ribbon Committees. Currently, voters only vote for three of the five candidates from that group, and that rule has propelled the voting process into the limelight. Some say that is what kept both New England Patriots candidates, coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft, on the outside looking in last year.
Modern-era candidates have been impacted as well under the new rules instituted a few years ago, as the hall hasn’t enshrined a full class of modern-era players since then. Only a maximum of five modern-era players can be elected in a given year. From 2021-2024 each class has had at least seven names, with an average of exactly eight. The new rules caused the 2025 class to dwindle to only three players — four total enshrinees – and in 2026 that number was four — five total enshrinees. Up to five players can be enshrined; however, the new rules make it more difficult as the average number of enshrinees has been cut by an average of one-half.
When the candidate list is whittled down to 15 finalists, hall voters trim that number down to seven. Each voter then votes for five of the seven remaining players to see who does indeed make the 80% threshold.
Will those voting regulations be lifted or restructured with the needed changes to possibly benefit Roethlisberger? Time will tell as powers that be in Canton stated they are open to change. Currently, a candidate must receive 80% of the votes or receive the most votes if no candidate reaches 80%, with those numbers not very likely to change.
Hall of Fame President Jim Porter, speaking via ESPN, said, “We’ll do some tweaks and we’ll take a look.” Porter was referencing the new rules changes; however, he declined to elaborate on any proposed changes. Porter did say, “The numbers got really high,” when speaking of how many individuals the hall was enshrining under the old voting rules.
The Hall of Fame already delivered a stern warning to its voters emphasizing that anyone who does not follow the new rules voting in accordance with the new guidelines could potentially be stripped of their voting privileges. Some have justified their previous votes by citing the limitations of the voting process. As for the new process, what changes if any remain to be seen.
In essence, what does this all mean for Roethlisberger and his push to become a first-ballot selection? Will a so-called tweak in the voting procedure come to fruition in time to help him gain entry?
He is among some very notable other first-timers, including the likes of Rob Gronkowski, Cam Newton and Adrian Peterson along with Belichick whose 2026 snub automatically pushes him into 2027. Antonio Brown is also on the list, but his antics over his NFL tenure make it nearly impossible for him to enter Canton as a first-ballot nominee. That alone makes it extremely difficult under the Hall of Fame’s current voting system and rules. Big Ben will need 40 out of 50 voters to agree he is a worthy candidate, assuming he makes the final seven player list. While classified as a no-brainer at one point in time, that was before the current state of the voting system.
Roethlisberger will be up against some other notable quarterbacks on the list, and appears to have the early edge, but two quarterbacks being enshrined in the same year has been out of the norm for 10 years. It’s not impossible, just not probable.
Hall of Fame voters have only selected multiple quarterbacks for enshrinement five times since 1971, most recently being in 2016. The players and years are as follows: 1971 — Y.A. Tittle and Norm Van Brocklin; 1985 — Joe Namath and Roger Staubach; 2005 — Dan Marino, Benny Friedman, Fritz Pollard and Steve Young; 2006 — Warren Moon and Troy Aikman; 2016 — Brett Favre and Kenny Stabler.
The Class of 2005 was absolutely incredible so in the event you have no idea who Benny Friedman and Fritz Pollard are, do yourself a favor and research their names — you will be pleasantly surprised. Both have impacted and modernized the quarterback position as we now know it. Note also that Stabler got in through the Senior Committee, which is an entirely separate vote from the modern area list Favre was on.
Roethlisberger’s key credentials for enshrinement — two-time Super Bowl champion, top 10 in several all-time passing categories and a stellar 18-year career with his only team, Pittsburgh — make him worthy of enshrinement. I won’t bore you with the entire list of credentials, but I will list a few more — the youngest quarterback to win a Super Bowl, NFL records for most career 500-yard passing games(four), completions in a game (47), wins in a season by a rookie quarterback (13) and games with a perfect passer rating (four).
It’s a given that Big Ben will always be mentioned in the same breath as Terry Bradshaw for being one of the greatest quarterbacks to don a black & gold uniform. There isn’t a member of Steelers Nation who will ever dispute that statement and associated facts of their accomplishments.
What Roethlisberger has achieved both on and off the playing field has labeled him nationwide as a Pittsburgh icon. Rightfully so!
While some see him as a definitive first-ballot selection, others argue his case may be more suited for a later, rather than immediate, induction. Some analysts have even gone as far as to project it will be several years before a gold jacket is hoisted upon his shoulders.
The stiff competition for the 2027 class and the Hall’s rules makes his immediate, first-ballot entry into Canton uncertain.
He should a first time hall of famer