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Ben Roethlisberger’s sore thumb is really just an incidental factor in the Pittsburgh Steelers line move.
Sure, the starting quarterback’s questionable status for Saturday’s game with the Minnesota Vikings partly accounts for his team dropping from -4 to -3. But this is just the second week of preseason, and he wouldn’t have seen much action anyway.
“He was probably only going to play a quarter at the most,” a 5Dimes.com line manager tells Covers.com
The big thing is that backup Charlie Batch is now getting the starter’s treatment, which means extended playing time for the third and fourth stringers.
“(Coach Bill) Cowher isn’t going to leave Batch in any longer (than if he was Roethlisberger),” notes the line manager. “That means you’ve got to use everyone else to clean up three quarters.”
Roethlisberger sprained thumb ligaments during Wednesday’s practice, but the injury doesn`t seem to be overly serious. Though because Roethlisberger has hurt the same thumb in each of his first two NFL seasons, the team is erring on the side of caution.
"I think it`s something we have to be conscious of," Cowher told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Cowher also tells the Post-Gazette that if Roethlisberger is held out, Batch will get “just enough work to keep him sharp (and) no more.” That leaves rookie Omar Jacobs and second-year player Shane Boyd to run the offense, a prospect that obviously isn’t inspiring bettors.
“I watched (their preseason opener against Arizona) and they’re pretty thin after Batch,” says the line manager.
Jacobs completed 5-of-7 passes for 61 yards and a touchdown while Boyd connected on 8-of-16 for 67 yards and an interception as the Steelers fell 21-13 to the Cardinals as 3-point road dogs last Saturday. Local papers report that Boyd has struggled to learn the offense. Jacobs has a better grasp, but still experiences difficulty with his downfield reads.
“That guy from Bowling Green (Jacobs) is pretty good but I mean, he’s not ready to step up and lead an NFL offense just yet,” says the line manager. “He’s maybe had, what, 10 practices? But I guess that’s what preseason is for.”
Banking on these quarterbacks is certainly risky, but Pittsburgh faders have no guarantee Roethlisberger won’t play. While Cowher describes him as questionable, he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of starting him either.
“He feels better than he did," Cowher told reporters Thursday. "We`ll see how he feels (Friday). If he feels OK, he`ll play Saturday. There is no indication at this point that we have to do any kind of tests on it.”
Sure, the starting quarterback’s questionable status for Saturday’s game with the Minnesota Vikings partly accounts for his team dropping from -4 to -3. But this is just the second week of preseason, and he wouldn’t have seen much action anyway.
“He was probably only going to play a quarter at the most,” a 5Dimes.com line manager tells Covers.com
The big thing is that backup Charlie Batch is now getting the starter’s treatment, which means extended playing time for the third and fourth stringers.
“(Coach Bill) Cowher isn’t going to leave Batch in any longer (than if he was Roethlisberger),” notes the line manager. “That means you’ve got to use everyone else to clean up three quarters.”
Roethlisberger sprained thumb ligaments during Wednesday’s practice, but the injury doesn`t seem to be overly serious. Though because Roethlisberger has hurt the same thumb in each of his first two NFL seasons, the team is erring on the side of caution.
"I think it`s something we have to be conscious of," Cowher told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Cowher also tells the Post-Gazette that if Roethlisberger is held out, Batch will get “just enough work to keep him sharp (and) no more.” That leaves rookie Omar Jacobs and second-year player Shane Boyd to run the offense, a prospect that obviously isn’t inspiring bettors.
“I watched (their preseason opener against Arizona) and they’re pretty thin after Batch,” says the line manager.
Jacobs completed 5-of-7 passes for 61 yards and a touchdown while Boyd connected on 8-of-16 for 67 yards and an interception as the Steelers fell 21-13 to the Cardinals as 3-point road dogs last Saturday. Local papers report that Boyd has struggled to learn the offense. Jacobs has a better grasp, but still experiences difficulty with his downfield reads.
“That guy from Bowling Green (Jacobs) is pretty good but I mean, he’s not ready to step up and lead an NFL offense just yet,” says the line manager. “He’s maybe had, what, 10 practices? But I guess that’s what preseason is for.”
Banking on these quarterbacks is certainly risky, but Pittsburgh faders have no guarantee Roethlisberger won’t play. While Cowher describes him as questionable, he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of starting him either.
“He feels better than he did," Cowher told reporters Thursday. "We`ll see how he feels (Friday). If he feels OK, he`ll play Saturday. There is no indication at this point that we have to do any kind of tests on it.”
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