It looks like Ben Roethlisberger has bought his way out of a sticky legal situation ... by settling a lawsuit filed by a woman who claims the Pittsburgh Steelers QB forced her to have sex with him in 2008.
Lawyers for Roethlisberger and his accuser -- Andrea McNulty -- announced the two sides have reached an agreement which ends the lawsuit.
McNulty -- who worked at the Harrah's Hotel in Lake Tahoe at the time of the alleged incident -- had claimed Ben invited her into his penthouse suite to fix a broken TV ... and then raped her.
In her suit, McNulty claimed Ben became "stern," after the alleged rape ... kicked her out of the room and told her, "If anyone asks you, you fixed my television. You fixed my television. Now go!"
Ben adamantly denied all the allegations.
McNulty's lawyer also confirms they have dropped their case against multiple Harrah's employees McNulty had accused of covering up the alleged sexual assault.
Ben Roethlisberger and his Pittsburgh Steeler pals are barely keeping their heads above water during the lockout -- in fact ... they SOAKED their unemployed asses at a waterpark in Texas this weekend.
Big Ben and the boys took a much needed break from doing nothing on Saturday -- and stopped by the Schlitterbahn Waterpark in New Braunfels.
A rep for the park tells TMZ, the guys hit some of the biggest rides -- including the Boogie Bahn Surf Ride, the Dragon's Revenge uphill water coaster, the Down Hill Racer and the Hill Side Tube Chute.
We're told they even made a sizeable donation to the park's Employees Scholarship -- but if the lockout goes on any longer, they may have to ask for it back.
Ever wonder what to get a guy who has everything (besides a Super Bowl XLV ring)? Well fear not -- 'cause Ben Roethlisberger and his fiancee have posted their wedding registry wish list!!!
From stemless wine glasses to a $175 salad bowl -- Ben's wedding guest are able to pick from a plethora of fabulous gifts for Ben and his wife-to-be to return enjoy!
With the July 23 date coming up fast -- Ben's guests better get a move on ... 'cause everybody knows the cheap stuff goes first!!
Ben Roethlisberger will be involved in another legal situation with a woman he may or may not be sleeping with ... when he SIGNS A MARRIAGE CERTIFICATE ... and it's all going down in July.
TMZ has obtained a copy of Ben's "Save the Date" cards ... informing guests about his Summer marriage to Ashley Harlan.
Ben and Ashley are all set to tie the knot in Pittsburgh -- but they haven't revealed any specifics about where it will go down.
After Ben Roethlisberger's crappy performance last night ... everyone's been asking the same question -- should he have stayed in Tuesday night and watched game film instead of boozing past midnight??
As TMZ first reported -- Big Ben dropped $1,000 at a Dallas area piano bar ... drinking rum and Diet Cokes with some teammates past midnight ... while karaoking along with the Billy Joel classic "Piano Man."
During hour 17 of the NFL Network's Super Bowl pregame show, Warren Sapp took exception to the video TMZ posted of Ben Roethlisberger out with his O-line earlier this week.
And what do we have to do to get an invite from Warren to the "other establishment?"
Fun fact: The phrase "Hold on, playa" (aka "H.O.P.") has been popularized on Twitter by Deion "Primetime" Sanders.
It's not the most controversial drinking night in Ben Roethlisberger's life -- but his boozy pre-Super Bowl outing this week sure did brew up a good argument ... and some serious karaoke.
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Ben Roethlisberger is paying extra special attention to his diet this week -- because when he was pounding drinks at a Texas bar Tuesday night ... he wanted his rum mixed with DIET COKE.
TMZ has obtained FOOTAGE of the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback hanging out at Pete's Dueling Piano Bar in Fort Worth Texas ... where he sang his face off from 11:00 PM until 1:15 AM the next morning.
Sources inside the bar tell us Big Ben arrived with two massive teammates -- and bought several rounds of drinks for himself AND the entire bar.
We're told Ben racked up an $800 tab -- and tipped an additional $200. People inside the bar tell us Ben was "nice, fun and took care of everyone."
In the clip, Ben can be seen singing along to the Billy Joel classic "Piano Man" while his teammates joined in on the fun.
So, we gotta ask ...
UPDATE: This morning, Ben told reporters about his big night out ... saying, "It was a superstition and tradition on Tuesday night. I take the linemen out to dinner. We went out for barbecue and then we wanted to hear some live music. We just had an enjoyable night."
Jeremy Piven thinks this year's Super Bowl is gonna suck -- because no one wants to see a game between Ben "Rapist-berger and the Cheese Heads."
Piven was hanging out at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah last week when he started talking sports ... voicing his distaste for a "cheesy rape-berger" match up between Ben Roethlisberger's Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers.
For the record, Big Ben's been accused of rape twice -- but charges were never brought against him in either case.
Ben Roethlisberger has got himself quite a catch -- 'cause the woman who has reportedly agreed to marry the Steelers QB enjoys ball handling and roasting marshmallows.
The lucky lady, Ashley Harlan, is a 2009 graduate from St. Francis University in Pennsylvania -- TMZ obtained these pics of Ashley hangin' with college friends. She earned a bachelor's degree and a master's in physician assistant science.
Ashley was also a high school studette in volleyball, softball, and basketball.
Her hometown paper -- the New Castle News -- is confirming the engagement ... but Big Ben has been mum on the subject. Not like he's got anything else going on ... (cough cough) playoffs.
Before Justin Bieber went toe-to-toe with a photographer -- sparking a police investigation -- he trained with "Iron" Mike Tyson! Wondering how they ended up together? Well, we got Tyson on the phone ... and you won't believe his excuse for kicking it with Biebs. Plus,…
