Let the process of forgiving begin.

But if early returns are an indication, Pittsburgh fans' welcoming of Ben Roethlisberger back into their hearts will be a long process, indeed.

Even with Steelers coach Mike Tomlin taking the name of the Roethlisberger camp at Mars last week, participation was way down compared to a year ago.

Yes, the economy is tighter.

Ben's name isn't what it used to be, either.

All one has to do is look at the history of Steelers quarterbacks to realize the challenging road Roethlisberger has in front of him.

Terry Bradshaw won four Super Bowls and was the MVP in two of them.

Before all that, he was an inconsistent and often-targeted quarterback. Fans even cheered when he was carried off the field with an injury.

Bradshaw held bitter feelings toward Pittsburgh for years because of that.

Cliff Stoudt once was known as a lovable, happy-go-lucky third-string quarterback who never played a regular season down in the NFL while earning his pension.

When a Bradshaw injury pressed Stout into service, he was OK at first, but played badly down the stretch. The Steelers were 9-2 at one point, but needed Bradshaw's final career start to win a game against the Jets to avoid a complete collapse.

That season ended at 10-7 with a first-round playoff loss to the Oakland Raiders. Stout bolted for the USFL, but Steelers fans never forgave him.

When Stoudt's team returned to Pittsburgh to play the Maulers, the game sold out — so fans could unmercifully pelt Stoudt with snowballs.

Neil O'Donnell was the low-risk, high-percentage passer who led the Steelers to Super Bowl XXX against Dallas. His two interceptions short-circuited a rally in the 27-17 loss.

O'Donnell took the money and ran to the New York Jets as a free agent that offseason. If he had returned to the Steelers? Heaven help him — and he knew it.

Kordell Stewart was the beloved Slash, a multifaceted offensive weapon who became a fan favorite.

Once he was the starting quarterback and failed in home playoff games, Stewart became one of the most hated players ever to wear the uniform.

There's plenty of history when it comes to love-hate relationships between Steelers quarterbacks and Steelers fans.

Roethlisberger has received plenty of love. Big Ben jerseys were all over the tri-state area.

But none of those previous quarterbacks was accused of mistreating women like Roethlisberger has been.

Guilty or innocent, his image has been soiled.

Now Ben's in the process of trying to win back the fans' cheers.

Good luck with that.

Bradshaw did it by winning. Roethlisberger needs to follow that same formula.

Ben had better win and win a lot — or all will never be forgiven.