SB Nation User Blog: PA ARMY OFFICER

The case for Charlie Batch

PA ARMY OFFICER — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 15:45:36 -0000

It has been argued that Charlie Batch is past his prime, that he should be put out to pasture and be given a coaching role. It has been argued that Dixon should be our number 2 back. It has been argued that we should've snatched Mike Vick. It has been argued that we should have spent the money to keep Leftwich as our number 2.

#1. Batch is past his prime.

I won't argue that his best days are likely behind him, but look at what Kurt Warner is doing at a full 4 years older. Charlie has a much higher pedigree than Kurt, and was never lucky enough to play in systems such as Kurt or with receivers of real caliber. Charlie is applauded by the training staff for the amount of work that he puts in, not only in the film room, but in the weight room as well.

#2. Make Charlie a coach, since he's a hometown boy already.

Charlie has a coaching role already, in his role his value is truly realized.

The main reason that Batch is so incredibly valuable is that his experience has allowed him to run the best damned scout team in the NFL hands down! He is smart enough that he can lead, teach, and most importantly mimic what our opposition is going to do the following week.

Batch has been constantly applauded by Lebeau in that he helps prepare his defense better than any QB who has ever run a scout team against him. Batch is a marvel at taking the film study of the unit they will play against and mimicking similar scenarios so that our defense can practice against it.

For that reason alone Batch keeps the #1 defense the #1 defense and more than earns his roster spot. Dixon is learning how to be the quarterback he’s going to be. Batch has mastered being the quarterback that we are going to be playing against, for the week prior to the game anyway.

#3. Dennis Dixon should be our number 2.

Dennis Dixon has yet to play any real time at QB in a real NFL game versus a real NFL Defense. He may be able to burn the other team's 3rd and 4th stringers, but I'd hate to see what the Raven's D would do to him, especially if we have any injuries to our offensive line.

I'm not sure that I'd like to see Dixon and half the playbook. I'd rather see Charlie, the full playbook, and Santonio, Hines, Heath, Limas, and Mewelde playing real football.

#4. Shoulda grabbed Mike Vick.

That is not, and has not ever been the Steeler's way. We don't go after someone else's headache. I don't want to hear this crap about Wildcat. Robert Kraft said it best when asked about Vick. "Why would I do anything that might take the best quarterback in the game out for even one play." I'm not saying Ben is the Best QB in the league, but he's up there and I like Kraft's logic in this example.

Besides why would we try to match the money the Iggles offered. That's crazy-talk.

#5. Shoulda payed for Lefty

Leftwich wanted the chance to start. He took a bargain at 2Million for the chance to start down in Tampa, and this morning on Sirius NFL I heard that he is currently the frontrunner to start in Tampa. Leftwich said what he needed to if no offers came along.

#6. Intangibles

Charlie is a hometown boy who could have made a starting bid at a lot of places, San Fran anyone? He takes the Veteran Minimum to play here, he is worth more than that, and is a bargain. He has proven himself over the past 4 years. He may be injury prone, but he's a backup QB. He is the players Union representative for the Steelers, and is a leader in the locker room.

All of that said, when I play Madden Football I trade Charlie after year one every year. Guess what, we aren't playing a video game here. Intangibles mean something, and Charlie Batch means a lot to this team and this city.

Arguments for top Offensive 5 positions next year

PA ARMY OFFICER — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 15:50:15 -0000

Because I am extraordinarily bored this offseason I wanted to write up who I thought were the top 5 in their position and see where the Steelers rank. I want to open this up for discussion and see what the rest of you think as well. I am throwing stats out of the window for this, and going off of gut. It also leaves more room for everyone else to argue using stats, and should allow more debate.

I'm not going to bother with certain positions that the Steelers cannot compete in such as Punter, or Guard, which makes me kind of sad since for so many years we had the best guard in the NFL.

I will do two posts as I can't devote the time to both Offense and Defense at one time.

OFFENSE

QB - RB - TE - WR

Even though the numbers may not support my arguments here, I would like to argue using points that I pull out of thin air, and end any arguments with "well, this other guy didn't win the Superbowl, neener neener" I jest, sort of.

QB - #3

When it comes to quarterbacks I think we can go ahead and table the argument about the 2004 draft class, and pick up the argument of who is the best quarterback in the NFL right now.

Ben has to be in the argument of the top 5 quarterbacks in the NFL right now. His performance at the end of Superbowl XLIII put him over competators such as Kurt Warner, Drew Brees, Donovan McNabb, Eli Manning and others that might have had better or more numbers through the season but couldn't get it done when it mattered most. I put him as the number 3 best quarterback in the league right now after Peyton and Brady.

Our backup situation is enviable as well, you have Batch who can fill in games and knows our system very well, Leftwich has expressed a desire to backup Ben just to stay in Pittsburgh, and Dixon has nothing but upside.

RB - #5

I think that this is the one that I am going to get argued with the most, and rightfully so. FWP started the year strong, and finished the regular season strong as well, but was injured for over half of the season. He can be made a non-factor by especially stout defenses, and is not a huge threat in the passing game or on the goal line. Rashard started one game and was on IR, and Moore played well, but not amazingly so.

So why would I argue number 5 for our running backs? Because there is amazing potential for them to improve this coming year, and after all is said and done I believe that at the end of next year the Steelers will be near the top of the NFL in terms of rushing yards. My reasons for this belief are:

1. The offensive line will improve and have the opportunity to gel behind four guaranteed returners and someone new. Simmons is going to have a chip on his shoulder about missing the Superbowl, and the man needs to be challenged to be at his best. He played well when Chris K was breathing down his back for two years. He will be challenged this year by someone.

2. Rashard Mendenhall is going to keep FWP fresh, and Mewelde Moore is going to make the third down catches, and I see them bringing in someone to compete with Russell as a short-yardage back.

3. The pass game is going to include Heath more and open up more leads for the running game to run out the clock.

4. Our scheduel will not dictate as many close games or come from behind wins, meaning we will not have to abandon the run as soon as we did this past year.

I am not sying FWP is going to be the number 5 best running back, we have become a committee. I am saying that Pittsburgh is going to have a top five rushing team next year.

I see the Vikings, The Titans, The Giants, and the Pathers being better this next year. I see us rising above The Chargers, The Falcons, The Jets, and the Ravens.

TE - #3

For what our tight ends do there are not many all-around tight ends better than Heath Miller. He is a good blocker, a good route runner, an excellent reciever, and a great target in the End Zone. Matt Spaeth is adequate and if he can improve his hand eye coordination over the next year I challenge you to find a better duo of all around TEs in this league.

I'd say that for his all around impact there are maybe one or two better TE's out there Antonio Gates (when healthy) and Tony Gonzolez (when healthy), I'd put Heath's all-around contributions above KII, Shianco, Daniels or anyone else.

WR - #5

There are alot of individuals who put up better numbers than any of our wide-outs last year, there were a few tandums that blew us away, and there was even one team with three wideouts comparable to our number 1 guy. Oh yeah and we are almost assured to lose Nate W. So how can I say that our recieving corps will be a top 5?

The guys on this WR corps are clutch. Hines and Tone make a defense decide who is going to kill them, and if the D was really good we had to trust Nate to do so, and he stepped up. Now we will have to trust Limas Sweed, and you know what? Limas has all the tools to be twice the reciever that Nate ever was.... except for hands, no, not even hands, Sweed has some paws on him, huge hands like Randy Moss, it's his hand-eye coordination that is lacking. Things like that can be fixed. Look how many years we waited for Nate, and he had nowhere near the pedigree, size, or speed as Limas, and judging by that block in the AFC Championship game I'd say that this guy is definitely Steeler material.

Hines showed us last year that he still has a lot left in the tank, and looking at guys like TO, Galloway, Harrison, playing well into their 30's Hines can probably have 3 or more years of greatness left in him. Ben has built trust with these guys, and like I said before the O-line can only go up from last year, Ben will have more time next year.

I'm not going to even bother to try and give a case for Tone, as I could never compete with the amazing writing of Maryrose.

http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2009/2/23/764795/is-santonio-holmes-the-rea

This group will never put up the numbers of the Cardinals, the Colts, or the Saints, but that doesn't mean that they aren't better. We haven't seen but the tip of what this group of recievers can do. I believe that next year we will.

Look out for my Arguments of the top 5 Defensive positions next year on Sunday.

Poll

Where do you think the Steelers Offense will Rank next year?

Top 3

2 votes

Top 5

1 votes

Top 10

19 votes

Top 15

21 votes

Top 20

5 votes

Top 25

0 votes

Below Top 25

0 votes

48 votes | Poll has closed

Leftwich on his way

PA ARMY OFFICER — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 14:52:32 -0000

Hey all, PPG reports that the team is flying in Brian Leftwich formerly of Jacksonville and Atlanta for a physical. Not sure how I feel about this.

What other QBs would your rather see? Daunte Culpepper? Maybe Tommy Maddox tries another go? Let's talk Air Mcnair out of retirement, God knows that he's generally had success in Pittsburgh, just not so much in that Monday night game last year.

Initial reports put Batch back with the team around weeks 3-4. Is this the end for Potts?

Your thoughts?

The Steelers 2005 Season From Iraq

PA ARMY OFFICER — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 15:14:25 -0000

I was a young First Lieutenant embarking for training for my first Iraq mobilization in January 2005. My unit was a National Guard Combat Engineer Battalion from Johnstown, PA. I, like many of my unit members, was from Pittsburgh. Many of us were Steelers fans which had watched our team roll through virtually everyone during that 2004 season. We watched our team roll to the AFC Championship game.

Our unit was augmented by three companies as if picked by the football God's themselves. One was from Rhode Island, and were mostly Patriot fans. One was from within our state from Philadelphia. The other was from Indiana, and mostly built up of Colts fans.

Our Rhode Island outfit took great pleasure in the misery of the Colts, Steelers, and Eagles fans, in that order, during those first few weeks of mobilization training. The hatred was so thick that you could cut it with a bayonet. If you have never watched a playoff game in a room filled with 100 Steelers fans and 100 patriots’ fans that are all trained to kill and are enjoying the last alcoholic beverages that they will be allowed to consume for a year, then you cannot imagine the chaos that I have seen.

We deployed to Iraq in the early summer of 2005 with our Rhode Island company having the hometown champion team. They flew a Patriots Superbowl Championship flag outside of their orderly room, which was right across the building from my orderly room.

My goal was to see my team wipe the smug look off of those Patriots fans' faces in the third game of the 2005 season. But that was not to be as the Pats pulled out a come from behind victory off of the foot of Adam Viniteri in the closing seconds.

I remember this season as what helped get me through the deployment. I was constantly leading military convoys, and between IEDs, direct fire, indirect fire, and snipers I was beat up. My Colonel would ask me how the games went, he would let me adjust missions to allow me to watch the games. If when discussing changing the date of a Ground Assault Convey to the date of a Steelers game, I would cry foul, and that was considered a legitimate excuse.

The playoffs were memorable, in that I was coming home for the superbowl, and I desperately wanted to see my team in that game.

Watching the Steelers tear down the Bengals and Carson Palmer was worth staying up until 5am.

I remember watching the Colts game at 3AM in my hooch, I had been yelled at twice to shut the hell up, because my screaming had awoken everyone.

I was awaiting airlift out of the country for my two week, mid-tour R&R leave, and our chopper lift was delayed due to a sandstorm. Thank God for that sandstorm, as I was able to watch the Steelers beat the Broncos in the AFC Championship game in an aircraft hangar in Al Taqqedum Iraq.

Upon arrival home to the States I was presented with my Christmas gift from my ex-wife (we were happily married back then). A 65 inch High Definition TV to watch my team on. All of my family and friends came to my house to watch the game. I enjoyed some of the first beers that I had in a year, and with my daughter on my lap, my wife cuddled up on my side, and all of my friends and family around; we watched them get that "one for the thumb".

I will always count that as one of my most cherished memories. That and being able to hang the Superbowl XL champion flag outside of my unit orderly room in Iraq only days after the Superbowl.