Ben Roethlisberger clarifies what happened between him and the 49ers during the 2022 season

Ben Roethlisberger recently made headlines for his critique of Lamar Jackson’s game during his latest podcast episode. During the episode, the former Pittsburgh Steelers‘ quarterback also clarified what exactly transpired between him and the 49ers during the 2022 season. 

Roethlisberger revealed last month that the 49ers reached out to him following injuries to Trey Lance and Jimmy Garoppolo. Things really didn’t materialize beyond that, however. 

“I’ll reiterate. It was them calling my agent just to gauge interest,” Roethlisberger said. “They called, but again, I’ll reiterate, It was gauging interest.”

Based on his recent comments, it appears that Roethlisberger never had a direct conversation with anyone on the 49ers, including head coach Kyle Shanahan. Roethlisberger’s initial comments seemed to indicate that he was legitimately considering a comeback with San Francisco. 

“I had discussions. … I’d be lying if I didn’t say there was a small part of me that was intrigued,” Roethlisberger said at the time. “I could still do it and prove to people that I could still play. At the end of the day, I just can’t see myself in anything other than black and gold.”

As we all know, Roethlisberger did not join the 49ers. San Francisco instead turned the ball over to rookie Brock Purdy, who won his first seven starts while helping the 49ers reach the NFC Championship Game. The 49ers lost to the Eagles after Purdy sustained an elbow injury in the game that ultimately required offseason surgery. 

While he didn’t join forces with them, Roethlisberger could see the 49ers acquiring Aaron Rodgers if the Jets‘ deal with the Packers falls through. A California native, Rodgers grew up cheering for the local team, especially Hall of Fame quarterbacks Joe Montana and Steve Young. 

“I know he’s been mentioned with them before,” Roethlisberger said. “I could see it happening. They’ve got a great team, great defense, got a lot of weapons. He likes the boots under center, getting out, moving. He’d be great in that offense, obviously.”