Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to play Sunday for Pittsburgh Steelers

After being activated to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 53-man roster after passing the NFL’s required COVID-19 protocols, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will play Sunday in the Steelers’ game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

After testing positive for COVID last week and missing Pittsburgh’s game against the Detroit Lions, Roethlisberger has now passed all protocols and is cleared to play against the Chargers. The quarterback flew to Los Angeles on a separate plane as a precaution.

Roethlisberger has thrown for 1,986 yards and 10 touchdowns compared to only four interceptions this season for the Steelers, who are currently 5-3-1 and in second place in the AFC North.

Pittsburgh and Los Angeles are set to kickoff at 8:20 p.m. ET Sunday on NBC.

Steelers were planning to be without Roethlisberger again Sunday

Earlier in the week, the Steelers were planning as if Roethlisberger’s status wouldn’t change ahead of Sunday night’s game. But Roethlisberger is vaccinated, and that left the possibility of his return for the game open. If he was unvaccinated, he would not have been a possibility to suit up.

Roethlisberger actually self reported symptoms ahead of last week’s game. He was then tested, where a positive result was returned. With so much uncertainty surrounding Roethlisberger’s status this week, the Steelers planned as if it would be Rudolph under center yet again.

“Like I told the team yesterday in the team meeting and I’ll tell you guys [the reporters], we’re going to build our plan around getting Mason ready to play,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday. “We’re going to highlight his talents and skills relative to the opponents that we intend to play. We’re going to build that plan, we’re going to work that plan, we’ve got a young offensive unit, and we’ll let that lead us throughout the week.

“If we get to a point in the week when Ben has an opportunity to get on a moving train, that’s exactly what he’ll do. He’ll be capable of executing the game plan. I really have no reservations about that. … As we come out of the gate tomorrow laying down the foundational things for the week, rest assured that we’ll be focusing our energy on readying Mason Rudolph and highlighting what he does and what the group does with him.”