On The Steelers: Being best group of backup QBs poses huge problem
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Ben Roethlisberger had two of three touchdown passes == the other coming from Byron Leftwich == in Thursday's preseason victory against the Philadelphia Eagles. -
Dennis Dixon has a laugh with teammates at a training camp workout earlier this month. Dixon is in his fourth year with the Steelers after being drafted out of Oregon in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL draft.
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If there is a better situation than the one the Steelers have at quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger would like to know it. And he is not speaking about himself.
People can debate all day about where Roethlisberger ranks among starting quarterbacks in the league, but there is little debate about those who back him up. The Steelers have the best, most experienced group of backup quarterbacks in the NFL.
"It kind of amazes me they don't get talked about more than they do because I think we have four capable starters," Roethlisberger said.
Two were young "franchise" quarterbacks with other teams in the league, and all three have started NFL games. Charlie Batch started 46 games in his first four seasons with the Detroit Lions. Byron Leftwich started 38 games in his first three seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Each has passed for more than 10,000 yards. Dennis Dixon started two games during Roethlisberger's suspension last season, and the Steelers won them both.
"[With] a lot of teams you hear people say, 'Oh, my God, we would never survive if Peyton Manning went down' or Tom Brady or something like that," Roethlisberger said. "We can not only survive, we can thrive and win."
And did. The Steelers went 3-1 while Roethlisberger served his four-game suspension last season behind Dixon (2-0) and Batch (1-1) after Leftwich, signed to be No. 2, fell to a knee injury in the final preseason game.
The only problem facing the Steelers about their backup quarterback situation is deciding which one will go. Leftwich again has a lock on No. 2, so it comes down to Dixon or Batch. The Steelers have long had good, capable backup quarterbacks, but they never have had the kind of quality and experience from one through three -- never mind four -- at the position.
Leftwich has started games for three NFL teams (Jacksonville, Atlanta and Tampa Bay). Surprisingly, he has not started a game for the Steelers. He backed up Roethlisberger for the 2008 Super Bowl season after a knee injury put Batch on the shelf in training camp. He left as a free agent to join Tampa Bay as the Buccaneers starter, but that ultimately did not work out and he re-signed in 2010 to back up Roethlisberger.
"I feel better this year than I did last year because I know the system so well now I'm not thinking about it, I can just go out and play and react," Leftwich said.
As with Batch in Detroit, Leftwich started quickly in Jacksonville after the Jaguars made him the seventh overall draft pick in 2003 from Marshall. An injury and new staffs brought his tenure there to a close in 2006. After that, the road swerved through Atlanta to Pittsburgh to Tampa and back to Pittsburgh and, at 31, Leftwich could remain as Roethlisberger's backup for a long time if he wants.
First Published August 22, 2011 12:00 am
