It’s his toughness that makes him special. Ben Roethlisberger is by far the toughest QB in the NFL constantly playing through injury, constantly turning in gritty and gut wrenching performances. With Baltimore and Houston both loseing and opening a lane for the Steelers to take control of the AFC North and the inside edge for Home Field Advantage in the playoffs, no way was a sprained left ankle going to keep Roethlisberger off the field.

Ben should have stayed home. The debacle the Steelers had Monday Night against the San Francisco 49ers was due to the limitations Roethlisberger had with the injury. Roethlisberger threw three interceptions, and the Pittsburgh Steelers missed that chance to take over the AFC's top spot in their 20-3 loss.

Roethlisberger was in a walking boot all week, was not repaired to play. His injury was obviously limiting his mobility, the X factor he relies on to be one of the NFL’s most dangerous QB’s. I’m not saying the Steelers win if veteran Charlie Batch is playing, but from the looks of how things went last night, he would have given the Steelers a much better chance.

Roethlisberger dinked-and-dunked with short passes on the game’s first drive, but the limitations were there. Roethlisberger was exposed when his attempt to connect with wide receiver Mike Wallace in the end zone was intercepted by Carlos Rogers.

“I didn’t get deep enough on the drop,” Roethlisberger said, “I rushed it. I should have held onto it.”

The second interception was on a high pass that caromed off the hands of tight end Heath Miller and right into the arms of 49ers safety Dashon Goldson.

The third pick came late in the fourth quarter during a desperate moment on a pass to Wallace that Roethlisberger admitted he simply forced.

Phenomenal Rookie, Aldon Smith had 2 1/2 sacks for San Francisco's stingy defense, who continually harassed Roethlisberger because he was easy prey sitting in the pocket and mot moving around. Roethlisberger still managed to finish 25 for 44 for 330 yards, but was sacked three times.

Charlie Batch is one of the most solid backup QB’s in the league right now, and that is a luxury only if the Steelers use him when he’s needed. Who’s decision was it to let Ben play? According to Roethlisberger it was Head Coach Mike Tomlin’s. The guy is such a competitor that he’d never pull the plug on playing if given the opportunity.

“I’ll go out and play at 5 percent. I don’t care,” Roethlisberger said during the post game. “I told Coach that. I said, ‘You make the call. You’re the head coach. I’m going to give you everything I’ve got no matter what (the decision) is.’ ”

Does Tomlin have reservations about playing Batch or even Dennis Dixon? The Steelers managed to start the season last year 3-1 while Roethlisberger was serving a suspension.

Ben better get some rest, because while Rashard Medenhall has yet to find running room, the 49er and Baltimore Ravens are showing teams just how to defeat the reigning AFC Champions.