Mark Madden: It will be interesting to see how seasons play out for Sidney Crosby, Ben Roethlisberger

Sidney Crosby has a six-game points streak, compiling three goals and eight assists over that span. He’s up to a point per game on the season, with 13 in 13.

Crosby had wrist surgery and battled covid but now looks the part after struggling for the best part of a month.

Ben Roethlisberger played a flawless fourth quarter Sunday vs. Baltimore, completing 9 of 10 passes for 129 yards and two touchdowns. He chucked a two-point conversion, too. Over those 15 minutes, Roethlisberger had a perfect passer rating of 158.3. He posted his 52nd game-winning drive and his 40th fourth-quarter comeback.

Roethlisberger is 39, looks it and plays behind a subpar, slapdash offensive line. But a dramatic win over the old enemy at Heinz Field had him emotional when he spoke after.

It was perfect. I wish that could be Roethlisberger’s last quarter.

It won’t be, though ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports this will be Roethlisberger’s last season with the Steelers. (That last part is a strange disclaimer.)

Crosby has more future than Roethlisberger. He’s 34, has taken better care of himself than Roethlisberger and is still discussed among hockey’s top players.

But it will be interesting to see how this season plays out for both.

Crosby’s rush got jump-started by linemate Jake Guentzel, an ironic twist. Guentzel has a 13-game points streak, fits hand in glove with Crosby and is on another streak of sorts: Guentzel never outsmarts himself. If a shot is there, he takes it, and his finishing is deadly.

Guentzel sniped two goals when the Penguins had five-on-three advantages at Vancouver Saturday. Nothing fancy, just shots. He prevented the Penguins from overcomplicating, as they often do: They hadn’t converted on their last seven five-on-threes.

The Penguins will get practices in before their next game Friday at Washington. That’s crucial to Crosby. Not for the reps; Crosby revels in routine.

Crosby’s jump is back. He’s going to the net. He’s fighting through checks. He’s nicking goals around the blue paint. He’s playing 200 feet. He’s coloring inside the lines.

Crosby is a decent bet to keep it up. Roethlisberger, not as much.

Roethlisberger is much more beat up than Crosby, as should be expected.

Crosby has more to work with than Roethlisberger does. Guentzel and Kris Letang > Chase Claypool and Najee Harris.

You wouldn’t bet on the Steelers making the playoffs. The Penguins are 50-50.

Roethlisberger showed he still possesses a bit of magic in that fourth quarter against Baltimore. The touch and the vision. But how often will he have it?

If Roethlisberger came back for a big finish, he was mistaken. It’s no sure thing that he regrets playing, but it’s possible. (The Steelers might regret it, too.) Roethlisberger is reminiscent of Peyton Manning’s last season at Denver, except Manning had a much better team.

But if this is Roethlisberger’s last season, he deserves unconditional support from Steelers fans until the clock expires at the end of his last game.

All Pittsburgh ever wants is more. The last 10 years have been disappointing for the Steelers, but Roethlisberger isn’t at primary fault.

Roethlisberger has two Super Bowl rings. (That’s as many as Manning, one more than Aaron Rodgers.) He was the main catalyst as the Steelers won seven straight games en route to Super Bowl XL in 2006. He executed a comeback drive and game-winning pinpoint pass when the Steelers won Super Bowl XLIII in 2009.

Roethlisberger is one of the three most important players in Steelers history: Joe Greene, Terry Bradshaw and Roethlisberger.

If it wasn’t for Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh would still be wallowing in ’70s nostalgia.

Roethlisberger is a Pittsburgh hero and should be treated as such on his way out the door.