Over the past few days, speculation has run rampant around the league about the Steelers decision to quietly shop starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to other franchises.

Despite their initial intentions, word quickly leaked out of Pittsburgh’s discussions with other clubs and up to now it seemed as though the frontrunners to eventually acquire the embattled quarterback were the Bills and the Raiders, given their defined need at that position.

But be that as it may, for now it seems as though those two teams have no intention whatsoever of consummating a deal with the Steelers in the near future, and their departure from the list of potential destinations for Roethlisberger leaves Pittsburgh with very little to work with.

The news of Buffalo and Oakland pulling out of the race so to speak, comes from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who has had both ears to the ground on this and almost every other story hitting the wire for some time.

It also comes on the heels of a strange story that landed on Twitter late last night, basically saying the deal was done between the Steelers and the Raiders, with Pittsburgh sending Roethlisberger and the #18 overall pick to Oakland in exchange for the #8 overall pick and All-Pro cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha. At the time, we questioned the validity of that rumor, which prevented us from posting anything on it, and as is the norm, it turned out to be nothing at all.

At this point, the Steelers have to be back at the drawing board, mulling over their options with regards to Roethlisberger, and will likely take the majority of this morning and afternoon before the draft commences to work on contingency plans. If they choose to lower their price down from a first round pick to a second plus something else, there’s little doubt they’d find interested suitors lining up at their door.

But until then, it’s all quiet on the front for Pittsburgh and their star quarterback.

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