Roethlisberger ready to play

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, recovering from shoulder and rib injuries, appeared ready to play on Sunday, his coach said. "I thought it was a positive day for Ben," said Steelers coach Mike Tomlin after Wednesday's practice. "He threw the ball around both vertically and horizontally. I though the ball had good velocity. It was positive." The Steelers were 1-2 in Roethlisberger's absence, and hope to improve on their 7-5 record in the home game Sunday against San Diego. While he was healing, he became Ben Roethlisberger Sr., with son Ben Jr. born two weeks ago, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted Thursday.