Kurt Warner: Roethlisberger not yet deserving of Hall of Fame tag

Even if Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger wins his third Super Bowl on Sunday with the Steelers, one former NFL MVP says that alone shouldn't make Roethlisberger a lock for the NFL Hall of Fame.

"I believe that this era has become about winning championships for a quarterback," former St. Louis Rams and Arizona Cardinasl quarterback Kurt Warner said in a radio interview. "But I just look at it from the fact that the best players to ever play this game belong in the Hall of Fame. And I'm not saying he won't be that guy. But I'm not sure he's there yet. I'm not sure if he just wins this game if that classifies him as one of the best to ever play the game."

Former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner says Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger isn't worthy of the Hall of Fame yet.

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By David Duprey, AP

Warner, who won Super Bowl XXXIV with the Rams, says he feels this way, in part, because Roethlisberger has never had to carry the Steelers on his own for long stretches of time.

"I'm just waiting to see Ben as the guy that carries his team at some point in time," Warner said. "The fortunate thing for him is he hasn't had to do that. He carries them in the last two minutes. He makes some key plays. (He's) phenomenal out of the pocket and ad-libbing. But for me, if you go to the Hall of Fame, you have to be a guy who can carry your team week in and week out as a quarterback. That's my opinion."

Warner also cited Roethlisberger's questionable statistics in some of his biggest games as another reason his credentials for the Hall of Fame aren't quite up to par.

"I like Ben," Warner said. "I think Ben's great and I think he's a winner. And to me that speaks volumes for your legacy. But when you're talking about the best quarterbacks in the league, you have to look at all the factors here. I mean, he won a Super Bowl and he was 8-23. But he won the Super Bowl and he gets that on his resume. But he was still 8-23."

While that's not entirely true -- Roethlisberger was 9-of-21 passing in the Steelers' victory over the Seahawks in Super Bowl XL -- Warner's point is noted.

But in the end, Warner said the Hall of Fame shouldn't matter to Roethlisberger if he winds up winning his third Super Bowl ring this Sunday.

"What would I rather have - be in the Hall of Fame or …winning three championships? I'd take the three championships. To me that's what it's all about. That's the bottom line."