I get what you are saying, by "Roethlisberger career" you are talking about the level of success, not the style. But Mac's style is 100% opposite to Big Ben (who had lots of raw talent, was able to creatively make plays out of nothing at his peak, was not a student of the game, low character), IMHO it is more like a poor man's Tom Brady with a bit of Drew Brees,
not the level of success of Brady or Brees (very unlikely), but the style. I've watched all of Mac's games, and his strengths are:
- Absolutely remarkable pocket presence and footwork (like Brady) due to an extensive tennis background (like Brees).
- Fantastic at reading college defenses and making the "right" decision, like a coach on the field. Very, very smart.
- Has had absolutely top notch coaching from Saban and Sarkisian, and very familiar with and comfortable with hard coaching.
- Hyper-competitive with a big temper that he really learned to control as a starter to become very, very poised.
- Super accurate when given time, especially with the long ball (throwing accurate long balls is really one of his strengths).
- Best in the biggest games (definitely one similarity to Brady and Brees in college).
- Fantastic leader and his team mates adored him.
His uncertain areas or limitations are:
- Absolutely not a running or scrambling QB, he will take the sack or throw the ball away instead.
- Although he almost always makes the "right" coach's decision and rarely made mistakes or turnovers, he isn't someone that creatively makes something out of nothing like many top modern quarterbacks (e.g., Murray, Jackson, Watson, Mayfield, and of course Mahomes),
- He has always played with a superior offensive line and absolutely amazing receivers, how will he do if that is not the case?
- Not an amazing athlete apart from his hand-eye coordination and footwork. Can he improve his athleticism like Brady did?
- Apart from holding off a 5 star top rated QB recruit that everyone thought would take his job, he hasn't experienced much adversity. How would he handle adversity?
- Although reading college defenses was a strength, can he take the next step to be a QB savant? I won't say "like Brady" because there will never be a QB with the football intelligence of Brady again IMHO.
- Can he learn to whip out the ball when protection is breaking down like Brady, Brees, or Manning? To be determined.
So, who knows if he has what it takes (50% of all first round QBs wash out), but he really is a perfect fit for the Patriots IMHO, I'm excited.