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The situation of whether Ben Roethlisberger will return for an 18th season or he'll retire has been the elephant in the room when it comes to Steelers news within the last week. The option of the Steelers cutting Roethlisberger if they want to move on is also a possibility.
Given that Roethlisberger has played 17 seasons with the Steelers and won two Super Bowls, I find it highly unlikely that they'll just cut him. I think he would just retire if they want to part ways, just like what happened with Troy Polamalu in 2015.
According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Roethlisberger met with team president Art Rooney II today and the meeting “went well.”
The Steelers have until the third day of the new league year, which begins on March 17 to figure out what they want to do with Roethlisberger, as he's due a $15 million roster bonus on March 19.
Ed Bouchette of The Athletic expects an answer within the next week on whether the Steelers are moving on from Roethlisberger or not.
It's encouraging that Roethlisberger's meeting with Rooney reportedly "went well," as if the Steelers were to part ways with Roethlisberger, it should be on good terms and no ill feelings. It can also mean that the Steelers are making progress on finding a salary that Roethlisberger will play at this year that will help the team cap-wise.
It's really up in the air right now when it comes with Roethlisberger's future with the Steelers, but it's good to hear that he had a positive meeting with Rooney.