Don’t worry I got this. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

The Steelers are down to their 3rd string quarterback to play this Sunday against the Browns.  Is it 2010?  That season the Steelers faced the first four games without Roethlisberger due to suspension and thanks to a fairly quick season-ending injury on Byron Leftwich, the ball was handed to Charlie Batch to lead the way.  This season isn’t the exact same scenario, but circumstances being what they are the ball is yet again handed to Charlie Batch to lead the Steelers offense to victory.  The Steelers are no strangers to dealing with injuries, but the quarterback position is a whole different animal.  Tomlin will say that he doesn’t have back ups, he has “starters in waiting”.  That might be true for the other positions but when you have a quarterback like Ben Roethlisberger leading your offense his backups aren’t exactly “starters in waiting”.  As much as we all love Charlie, he’s not a starter in waiting but he has proven to be more than capable of leading this team to victory.

We can argue up, down, left and right about how long Lefty played last Sunday night’s game injured against the Ravens and how Coach Tomlin should have yanked him for Batch but that’s all a moot point right now.  I think it’s safe to officially label Byron Leftwich as “injury-prone”, although his broken ribs do not appear to be season-ending at the moment.  I heard all kinds of opinions, theories and suggestions about the Steelers back up quarterback situation this week and I kept thinking to myself, “Was I the only one that had complete confidence in the backup situation before all this happened?”  Of course any team can feel confident about their back up quarterback situation (NY Jets excluded) until faced with the reality of turning to the backups.  Although we have never seen a whole lot of action out of Lefty on account of he tends to get injured quite easily after entering a game, I realized that there must be something that Tomlin and the rest of the coaching staff liked about him to keep bringing him back on the roster season after season.  I was ok with that.  Knowing he has the longest ball delivery known to man and he never put together a lengthy display of performances as a Steeler, I was still ok with him as the backup.  Mostly because our starting quarterback will always stay in the game unless apparently his ribs are about to puncture his aorta.

Know what fans don’t normally say?  ”Wouldn’t it be awesome if our starting qb goes out and the back up can come in?”  Regardless of who is waiting in the wings to back up a starting quarterback the story is same for every team, the back up gets no reps in practice with the first team and he’s not starting quarterback caliber of talent anyway.  I heard tons of “we need to sign a big name qb as a back up” and “we need to draft a qb to groom him to be Ben’s replacement” which sounded silly to me seeing as how Ben is in his prime and while you want to make sure you have a capable backup, you still need to build the team around him to win and not start beefing up the backup quarterback roster.

The Steelers signed former Patriots back up QB Brian Hoyer this week for some insurance.  One thing we can say for certain about him is that since he was a back up for Brady, he never saw a minute of regular season playing time.  Belichick isn’t exactly known for taking his foot off of the brakes and yanking his starters from a game regardless of the score.  Hoyer was added just as a body for the roster anyway.  Although you can never be too careful and I would hope Charlie gets one of those Michael Vick kevlar vests to play with since apparently this is the season for rib injuries, I would doubt we see Hoyer enter a game at all.  No telling if he stays on the roster once the Steelers are back at full strength.

Charlie’s last start was last season at home against the Rams with a 27-0 victory.  His teammates have complete confidence in him as do most of the fans.  Although his starts have been sporadic, he is 5-2 as a starter for the Steelers and has played well in each and everyone of those games.  While the situation is not ideal to be without the services of Ben for the unforeseeable future I still have confidence in Batch.  I was part of a crowd of Steeler fans cheering “Charlie! Charlie! Charlie!” in Tampa two years ago when Batch led the Steelers to a 38-13 victory throwing 2 touchdown passes.  Honestly, the only thing I’m worried about in this game against the Brownies is the Steelers as a whole underperforming and not Charlie making any mistakes.  The Steelers need this win badly because who knows who will be available next week against the Ratbirds.  In Charlie we trust.  Go Steelers!

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Hoyer (#8) could be a solid backup for the Steelers as they settle their Quarterback depth issue. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-US PRESSWIRE

Hoyer’s Career (2009-2011)

So who exactly is Brian Hoyer, and where did he come from?  Well for those of you readers unsure or unaware, Hoyer held the clipboard as Tom Brady’s top understudy in New England, and beat out three veteran Quarterbacks as an Undrafted Free Agent to make the team in 2009.  Over his three seasons in New England, Brian saw only a small amount of game-time (27 for 43, 286 Yards, 1 TD, 1 INT, 80.2 QB Rating, 1 Rush TD), but was nevertheless able to work in one of the best environment’s for a young Quarterback.  It is not often that UDFA’s are exposed to the teachings and work-ethic of people like his Quarterbacks Coach/Offensive Coordinator Bill O’Brien and Ugg Spokesman and a Three-time Super Bowl winner like Brady.

Unfortunately for Hoyer, his time in New England ended prematurely and probably had everything to do with the rest of the then-Quarterback-needy teams passing on Ryan Mallett in the 2011 N.F.L. Draft.  Mallett, a guy I believed was the best pure-passer and possessed the best potential N.F.L. skill-set (arm-strength and knowledge of passing game) in that Draft Class lasted until the end of the 3rd Round that season due to some character concerns.  To their credit, the Patriots jumped at the chance to take a 1st-Round talent like Mallett so late in the Draft process, and used the luxury they had with Hoyer and Brady in front of him and allow their 3rd Round selection to develop.  This season however, New England felt like Mallett was their Quarterback of the future.  As the #3 Quarterback and set to make $1.9 million dollars (RFA Tender), Hoyer who became the odd-man-out this past August, and was cut.

How the Steelers & Hoyer Can Benefit

With Hoyer on the roster now, the Steelers can properly gauge how well the 4th year pro picks up the Offense and whether or not he can compete for a roster spot next season with six regular season games and an entire offseason under his belt.  Remember, both Batch (38 years old in 2013) and Leftwich (33 years old in 2013) will be potential Unrestricted Free Agents next season, and I have a hard time believing that the Steelers would bring both if either of them back unless Hoyer is a complete and total flop.  Plus, the former Spartan will have the chance to learn under Coordinator Todd Haley, Quarterbacks Coach Randy Fichtner, as well as Roethlisberger and maybe even one of the elder statesmen over the coming seasons as he continues his development.  If Hoyer eventually succeeds and earns a backup spot with the team, he could definitely help to shore up Pittsburgh’s backup Quarterback position and entrench himself as “The Guy..Behind The Guy” (“Swingers” reference I know) as the #2 Quarterback on Pittsburgh’s Depth Chart.

Final Thoughts

Pittsburgh needed to find some way to bolster their depth at Quarterback in the present and in the future, and I believe this move to sign Hoyer can accomplish both goals.  I simply want the Steelers to have some sort of capable, younger (sorry Charlie), and non-injury prone option to turn to if Roethlisberger ever goes down for a significant period of time in the future.  Although the 6’2″ 215 lb. Hoyer is not an elite athlete, he has learned from some of the best Teachers and Students at the craft (O’Brien & Brady), and has displayed enough of a skill-set to establish himself as a legitimate #2 on an N.F.L. roster.

Whether it is Hoyer or somebody else, the Steelers need to have a non-injury prone/non-elderly backup option behind Big Ben sooner as opposed to later.  This will be especially the case when Big Ben enters his mid-30′s and a decade-plus of hits and injuries begin to really take their toll.  If this situation eventually happens and Roethlisberger goes down again, I earnestly hope that Hoyer, another Free Agent, or another Draft Pick can fill in and play adequately.

Hoyer has a golden opportunity to learn and continue to develop behind and under some of the N.F.L.’s best in Pittsburgh.  With the uncertainty behind Big Ben, Hoyer will likely be given every chance to wrestle the #2 spot away from Batch and Leftwich between now and the beginning of the 2013 season as well.  I am crossing my fingers that this deal works out well for both parties.

Chime in Readers: Will the move to acquire Hoyer help?  What do you think of the move?  Should Leftwich or Batch, or both be allowed to walk after the season?  Should the Steelers sign/draft another Quarterback this offseason?  The floor is yours…

Figures and Stats Courtesy of: Spotrac.com Pro Football Reference.com, Team Rankings.com, and ESPN.com

‘Gee. I wonder why Byron keeps clutching his ribs after every throw. Oh well, onward with the standard!’ Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

You know, for quite some time during Sunday’s game against the Ravens, I believed the battered Steelers could pull one out against the Ravens.  But, as the fourth quarter unfolded, that belief quickly filled with doubt until all shred of hope was obliterated even before the Steelers’ last drive.  The first thought that came to my mind when the clock reached :00 was, “Tomlin, what the hell were you thinking?”

We point a lot of fingers after a loss, but none falls more squarely than on head coach Mike Tomlin after this one.  Sure, there are others who made some mistakes.  Quite frankly it was the ‘little things’ added up over the game that helped cost the Steelers this one.  But, a big chunk lands right onto Tomlin like the pile of stinking dung heap he put out there on Sunday.

Todd Haley’s offense is structured around two things: 1) The inability of the offensive line to consistently pass block and 2) Big Ben’s quick release of the football.  When Ben went out with the shoulder and rib injury, it seems as if Tomlin ignored having to evaluate his QB situation, and who was best suited for the offense.  Todd Haley, based at looking at the play selection from the game, appeared to adjust his offense to the QB – I think there was only one or two quick screens to the wide outs.  Not really his fault because that’s all he had to work with.  Or at least, that’s all that was given to him.  Tomlin had an opportunity to flip flop the QB depth chart and place Batch as the starter over Leftwich.  It seemed like a rather obvious move to make over the course of the week, but everyone learned early that Lefty was going to be the one under center.

Once Leftwich was obviously hurt – go ahead, pick any of the dozen or so times that Leftwich grabbed his ribs or hunched over in pain over three quarters OR when his accuracy faltered on several easy tosses OR when he couldn’t throw the ball 30+ yards downfield – Tomlin should have yanked him out of there.  It’s hard to question Lefty’s toughness.  This dude rallied his Thundering Herd back in 2002 after breaking his tibia (shin).  Marshall still lost the game, but this kid at the time showed a ton of guts going back out there for several series.  Leftwich tried to stir up that toughness again, but the simple fact that it impeded his throws should have had him benched – either by his own admission or by Tomlin’s yank of the hook.  This pretty much goes under the category of what Ben tried to do last season against the 49′ers.  The questions always looms – was he injured significantly enough that he did more harm than good?  The answer to last season’s game against the 49′ers is ‘yes’ as is last night’s an even more resounding ‘YES!’

Batch’s quicker release over Lefty’s and his overall state of health (i.e. he didn’t have a rib and shoulder injury) should have had him in that game sometime early in the second half.  I was astounded every single time I saw Leftwich come back out on the field for the next series.  I admit, the offense was effective at certain points getting the ball past mid field, but that was in large part from the running game and not Lefty’s arm.  The Raven’s defense seemed on its heels at times, but a few incomplete passes emboldened the pass rush or the tighter coverage that caused the drives to stall short of field goal range to tie.  There’s no doubt that if Ben was in this game the Steelers would have won handedly.  An overall ranked 26th in defense, and the Steelers couldn’t even put 13+ points on the board?

All of it falls on Tomlin.  It was horrendously poor decision making by keeping Leftwich in.  I have no clue what Tomlin’s beef is with Batch, but that’s all it seems the reasoning could be as to why Tomlin refused to put Batch in the game – there’s an underlying problem between those two that we don’t know about.  The piss poor clock management was also on Tomlin.  Wasting two time out’s in :44 early in the 3rd quarter is just plain dumb, and the clock management in the two minute drill was just as terrible.  Hear me now, and here me many more times until this team puts up big numbers, big wins, big seasons, and big time championships – Mike Tomlin is not an elite coach.  He’s good, but he has a tendency to put up stinkers like last night when so much is riding on a season.  I say enough of the talking – the standard is the standard, the next man up, excuses are for the incompetent.  Put up as a coach and make good but bold decisions.  By the way, the coaching seemed pretty incompetent last night, what’s your excuse, Tomlin?

I was going to write in here that if Tomlin had any good sense left in him that he should start Batch.  Turns out good sense or none, he has no choice.  Sources around the league speculate that Leftwich could be out with a rib and shoulder injury for a significant amount of time.  Talk about some friggin’ deja vu.  It looks like we’ll have good ol’ Charlie on Sunday against the Browns.  The team will more than likely try out some QB’s during the week as Heath Miller is the next guy in line to throw the ball (uhhhhh, so do I yell ‘Heeeeeeeath‘ every time he completes a pass?????).  I guess Dixon could come back seeing that he saw glimpses of the play book during the pre-season before he was cut.

The choices don’t get any better from there folks.  We’re just going to have to hope for the best every week until we see Ben come back in a few weeks.

Dougie Fresh breaking tackles on his way to the endzone. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-US PRESSWIRE

What We Learned in Week 11 in the NFL:

• Three games end in overtime
• Patriots open up a can on Luck
• Eagles still suck without Vick
• Norv Turner’s seat should be on fire by now
• The Jets manage a victory but are still a mess
• Steelers remain winless against Ravens without Big Ben

We haven’t had a Monday morning like this in a while have we?  Nothing can ruin the start of the week worse than a Steelers loss.  That little extra sprinkle of suck on top of your sucky Monday morning is because this loss was at the hands of the Ratbirds, who have won 3 straight against the Steelers going back to last season.  There were some positives to take away from the game but we’ll get into that later, there’s some cheap shots we need to take first. (more…)

The standard is the standard. Mandatory Credit: Jim O

Who doesn’t love a good Tomlinism?  I plucked this beauty from his Tuesday press conference in which he stated how the Steelers would be heading into Ravens week without the services of Ben Roethlisberger, Troy Polamalu, Marcus Gilbert, and possibly Antonio Brown.  Now Polamalu and Gilbert have been gone for a few weeks now and Brown could possibly be missing his second game Sunday night if he’s not able to practice Friday but the most glaring name on the injury list is that of Ben Roethlisberger.  It has already been announced that Dougie Fresh (Byron Leftwich) will be the starter against the Ravens on Sunday night.  When Tomlin was asked how his team plans to deal with the barrage of injuries that has afflicted them including the starting quarterback he responded with,

“We just focus on the healthy guys; the injuries are what they are.  We’re not looking to make excuses.  Excuses are the tools of the incompetent.”

This is much bigger now than the “next man up” policy that has been talked to death by now.  This is more of an “every man up” mentality and any other cliché this Steelers team needs to take on in order to make the necessary plays to beat the Ravens and gain control of the division for the first time since the 2010 season.  The Steelers defense has had to make up for the loss of Troy Polamalu, who has been sidelined with a calf injury for the majority of the season, to be the statistical #1 ranked defense in the league.  It’s taken the efforts of players like Lawrence Timmons, LaMarr Woodley, Will Allen, and who I think is so far the DPOY for the Steelers; Ryan Clark.  Clark will be on the field playing Sunday night in spite of suffering another concussion Monday night against the Chiefs.  Clark passed all the league required concussion tests and participated in full practice on Thursday. (more…)