Ben Roethlisberger confirms he will be back for 14th season with Steelers

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger tweeted out sweet confirmation to fans on Friday that he will be back for his 14th season with the franchise.

And while the news is not exactly a surprise, it does have to calm the organisation..

As recently as a couple of weeks ago, Roethlisberger said he was "leaning toward" coming back, and general manager Kevin Colbert was confident that Pittsburgh's "Killer Bs" would stay intact with wide receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le'Veon Bell locked up with new contracts.

And the 35-year-old confirmed his continuity in Pittsburgh by tweeting: "Informed the team I am looking forward to my 14th season. Steeler Nation will get my absolute best!"

Informed the team I am looking forward to my 14th season. Steeler Nation will get my absolute best! — Ben.

— BigBen7.com (@_BigBen7) April 7, 2017

“As an organisation, we have been hopeful that Ben would return this year,” coach Mike Tomlin told the team's website.

"Ben and I have had many conversations, and I understood at this point in his career he is going to have to think about his long-term future.

"There is no question Ben wants to win championships for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and we know he will do everything possible to lead our entire team to achieving that goal.”

Roethlisberger, who turned 35 on March 2, has two years remaining on his five-year contract worth $99 million.

In 14 games last season, he completed 328 of 509 passes for 3,819 yards and 29 TDs with 13 interceptions. He had a 95.4 quarterback rating.

Roethlisberg has thrown for 46,814 yards and 301 touchdowns in his NFL career and has led the Steelers to two Super Bowl titles (2006 and 2009).