Body Language Expert Thinks Ben Roethlisberger Is Telling the Truth

Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger held a press conference yesterday to deny the allegations that he sexually assaulted a woman in a Lake Tahoe hotel room in July 2008. Roethlisberger read a brief statement as head coach Mike Tomlin stood behind him, called the charges "false and vicious," and took no questions from the assembled media.

WPXI, Pittsburgh's NBC affiliate, brought in a body language expert to "give insight into Big Ben's statement." Sally Chopping, who is described as a "public speaking coach" in the segment (which, to me, seems like something less than a body language expert), says that Roethlisberger appears "very sincere," and that he is telling the truth but "you can really tell he's finding this thing heavy going."

(Video after the jump.)

Related: Adam Schefter, via Twitter, writes that "... the things I'm hearing and knowing look very good for Ben."

Chopping also points to physical cues, like Big Ben shaking his head left and right just before speaking the word "never" and denying the accusation. "He's not thinking it, he's not faking it, he's feeling it." She adds that Roethlisberger constantly shrugging his shoulders was another sign that he was being sincere but that he's burdened by the situation. "What that tells you is that he's not that confident. Maybe that's by the amount of attention it's gotten so far ... and that he hasn't got the confidence that it'll go away quickly."

Shutdown Corner's MJD makes a good point:

What that might mean for Roethlisberger as it relates to his performance as we approach training camp, I wouldn't want to speculate. It can't be good, though, can it? Obviously, this thing has a long way to go before it's played out, but the possibility that this will be an enormous distraction, I think, has to at least be acknowledged.

Fair or not, Steelers fans are wondering the same thing. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ron Cook writes today that Roethlisberger's situation will have minimal impact on the Steelers' chances of defending its Super Bowl title, primarily because of something Tomlin told Cook's colleague Ed Bouchette last month: "If you are going to be good, distractions are a part of it."

No matter how this unfolds from a legal standpoint, the 2009 season will certainly be an exercise in distractions for the Steelers.