Coach Mike Tomlin announced this afternoon that Dennis Dixon would start next weekend’s opening game against the Atlanta Falcons. Veteran Charlie Batch will backup Dixon.
Opinions have varied all preseason over who should play during Ben Roethlisberger’s four game suspension. Even when Byron Leftwich was healthy, Steeler fans were split pretty evenly between Leftwich, Dixon, and even Batch.
Personally, I like the team’s decision to start Dixon. He has had more reps than Batch has this preseason and has been groomed to be the Steelers backup since he was drafted. Outside of one terrible, terrible preseason outing, he has played well.
I usually take a pretty conservative stance when it comes to football. I like to force the other team into making the first mistake. My first instinct would be to call for Batch to start. But sometimes, you just have to roll the dice a bit. Dixon might implode after a couple of quarters against Atlanta. But the time has come to find out who the Steelers have in Dennis Dixon. A couple of terrible quarters in a preseason game doesn’t make him any less interesting as a quarterback prospect. Now is his time to step up.
Batch provides the Steelers with a nice insurance policy if Dixon stumbles. But Charlie Batch has only thrown 2 NFL passes since 2007. He has a long injury history. His career QB rating is 77.2. Simply put, Batch is a great guy and has been a valuable soldier for the organization since he arrived in 2003, but he is not that good of a quarterback at this point in his career. A few TDs passes during garbage time of a preseason game don’t make him more interesting than Dixon.
While the biggest spotlight is going to be on the QBs come Sunday, the biggest factors for the first four weeks of the season are going to be the offensive line and the Steelers pass defense. If the Steelers can establish a bruising running game — a point that has been belabored by the front office all offseason — Dixon and/or Batch will probably play well. Similarly, if the Steelers secondary returns to 2008 form, the team won’t need to score many points to win games anyway.
I don’t expect Dixon throw for 3 TDs on Sunday. I don’t think he should have to for the Steelers to win. The team is too strong in other areas.
But there are always hree or four moments during any football game where your quarterback has to step up and make a big play and I trust Dennis Dixon to make those plays more than I trust Charlie Batch.
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