Roger Goodell Rules: Ben Roethlisberger To Be Suspended Monday or Tuesday

Pittsburgh Steelers Nation has been waiting for it—now ESPN has confirmed it via Yahoo Sports.

Steelers starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will officially be suspended by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Monday or Tuesday.

The news came across during ESPN's morning television show Mike and Mike in the Morning and was met by mixed reactions from the show hosts.

While both Mikes agree that Big Ben should be suspended, they disagreed on the length of the suspension.

Current reports are stating that Roethlisberger could be out as many as four regular season games, while others are saying it will be only two.

The timing of the suspension announcement could have ramifications for the Steelers organization and the NFL as a whole.

The announcement was not supposed to be made until after the draft, which means that there could be a potential trade in the works for the Super Bowl champion Roethlisberger, and the team interested in acquiring him may have wanted clarification before giving up their draft picks.

I honestly do not see the Steelers trading their heavily-paid franchise quarterback, but with the Rooney family's new dedication toward removing troubled players (see Santonio Holmes, Super Bowl MVP), I would not at all be surprised at the move.

Expect the announcement to come today rather than tomorrow, as the NFL will probably not want the negative press on the same day as their schedule release party.