By STEVE KING

If Sunday ends up being the last time that Ben Roethlisberger plays against the Browns in Cleveland, at least in the regular season, and that is what most people, especially those close to the situation, believe, then the next question that begs to be asked is this: What will the Pittsburgh Steelers do at quarterback going forward?

Roethlisberger is headed to the Pro Football Hall of Fame someday. There is absolutely no question about that. Is he the best quarterback ever? No, certainly not, but he’s been pretty darn good.

So was Terry Bradshaw, the former Pittsburgh quarterback already in the HOF.

Bradshaw retired nearly 40 years ago, and for the next two decades, the Steelers had a fitful time trying to find a good quarterback, going through the likes of Mark Malone, Bubby Brister and Kordell Stewart. It took 20 years for Roethlisberger to arrive.

So, can the Steelers find someone immediately — and no, it’s not Mason Rudolph or Rudolph Mason or whatever his name is — or will it take another extended period of time again until they land their guy?

The Steelers have a good foundation organizationally, and have had one for a while, so the expectation is that they will get him sooner rather than later. Sometimes, though, that’s not enough. A team needs more. It’s called luck. A club finds someone via a low NFL Draft choice or as a rookie free agent. That doesn’t happen often, but it occurs from time to time.

Usually, the top quarterbacks are the top draft picks. The AFC North is a prime example of that with Roethlisberger, Baker Mayfield, Joe Burrow and Lamar Jackson.

And with that having been said, if the Steelers can’t locate their next franchise quarterback quickly, then they’ll really slide in this division. They won’t be able to keep up.

No one in Cincinnati, Baltimore or Cleveland would feel sorry for them.