With Roethlisberger out, Steelers must rely on backup Batch
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The loss of Ben Roethlisberger may take the luster off the Steelers' opener tomorrow night against the Miami Dolphins for many. It hasn't for quarterback Charlie Batch.
Batch, 31, will make his first start in a season opener for the team of his youth and the one that has employed him since 2002. It will be only his third start in his five years with the Steelers.
"I have to calm myself down because I'm excited to be able to start at home and do this in front of family and friends," said Batch, a Homestead native who played at Steel Valley High School. "I haven't had many opportunities to play in Heinz Field, and that's why I'm kind of excited."
And he may not be the most keyed up member of the Batch family.
"I think my mother is more excited than I am. I think I have to calm her down more than me."
Batch has started openers before. They all came with the Detroit Lions, for whom he made 46 of his 48 NFL starts when he was considered the future of the franchise. Then, a regime change and injuries changed it all for someone the Lions once gave an $11 million signing bonus to extend his contract. That's $2 million more than the Steelers ever gave one player.
Under the circumstances, Batch considers this start to be more important than his previous 48, what with opening night in Heinz Field as the Steelers start the defense of their NFL championship against a team many pick to dethrone them.
His two victories in his only two previous starts in a Steelers uniform came last season. Without those, there would be no Super Bowl defense this year. He showed obvious rust when he started in Green Bay Nov. 6, having not thrown a pass in a real game that season or the previous one -- he sat out 2004 following knee surgery in training camp.
Matt Freed, Post-Gazette Associated PressCharlie Batch scrambles for a pickup against the Browns last season at Heinz Field -- one of his two starts as a member of the Steelers.
Click photo for larger image.
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The starts
Charlie Batch's two starts in 2005 in place in Ben Roethlisberger:
Nov. 6
Steelers 20, Packers 10
Efficient in first start since 2001, completing 9 of 16 for 65 yards and 1 INT.
Nov. 13
Steelers 34, Browns 21
Passes for 150 yards (13 for 19) and 1 TD and runs for another to help open a 17-7 halftime lead before he is knocked from the game with a broken right hand.
Batch of numbers
Charlie Batch's preseason statistics:
Category
No.
Attempts
37
Completions
22
Yards
217
Touchdowns
1
Interceptions
2
Rating
62.6
Things were much better Nov. 13 when he completed 13 of 19 passes for 150 yards and ran for a touchdown in a 34-21 Steelers victory against the Cleveland Browns in Heinz Field. All his work came in the first half because his right pinky finger was broken late in the second quarter.
Injuries, more than anything, have held him back. He missed the final five games of the 2001 season, his last in Detroit, with a shoulder injury. He missed the first three weeks of 2000 training camp after June surgery on his right knee. He missed five games in 1999 because of a broken right thumb.
The microfracture surgery performed on his knee in 2004 worked, and it's giving him no problem today. His finger long ago healed. Yet, he knows he must fight the perception that he's injury prone.
"People have a right to say that because that's what happened," Batch said. "All I can do is go out there and prove it wrong. I think people look at it and I haven't really proven I can stay out there for long periods of time."
There was a brief time in June that it appeared Batch might start this game, but it quickly became evident he would not once Roethlisberger went through the first practice of training camp and showed no effects from his June 12 motorcycle accident. Then Sunday came word that Batch would start the opener against Miami because of Roethlisberger's appendectomy. They might need him Sept. 18 in Jacksonville, too, for another prime-time game.
It's doubtful the Steelers have changed the game plan the coaches put in Saturday night when they still thought Roethlisberger would be their quarterback.
"It didn't much [change] last year, and it won't change what we're doing now," coach Bill Cowher said of Batch's two starts in 2005. "He is very comfortable with everything we're doing. So I think that's the good thing about having a veteran guy. And not just a veteran, but a guy who has played in a lot of big games.
"Charlie Batch has played in playoff games. He's been a starter. He's played in a lot of big games, so this won't be any different to him."
It will, too, be different, at least emotionally.
"The excitement, the energy in the stadium is just unbelievable," Batch said of the opener. "It's something I'm looking forward to because I wasn't able to take part in it last year."
First Published September 6, 2006 12:00 am
