Ben Roethlisberger will factor the growing knowledge of CTE into his decision on whether to extend his career beyond the 2017 season.

Roethlisberger also considered retiring after the 2016 season.

"I've been blessed to do this a long time," Roethlisberger, 35, told the Post-Gazette. He starts each training camp with a series of interviews with long-standing local media. "I think it's just seeing my kids growing up, and in the offseason I love getting to spend time with them, and then I come here and football season just has to take up so much of your time. Even when you get home, I try my best to turn it off when I walk in the front door. I think I do a pretty good job of that, but it still consumes you in a way.

"Just all those things combined -- being healthy, being able to play catch with my kids. I feel good mentally, I know this new study that came out that 90 percent [of NFL] players' brains who were studied had CTE.

"There's a lot of scary things, and I think my wife would be OK if I hung it up, too. But I still love the guys, I still love the game, so it was right for me to come back and give it everything I have this year."