For those that wanted to see Dennis Dixon get the start at quarterback for the Steelers Sunday, you got your wish. Mike Tomlin confirmed today that Dixon will start Sunday when the Steelers play Atlanta at home.
Dixon ran the first-team offense in practice and Charlie Batch ran the second team, and he will be the backup.
Dixon has made one start in his career, that coming last year on a Sunday night vs the Ravens in Baltimore.
The Steelers were preparing Byron Leftwich to be their starter during Ben Roethlisberger’s four-game suspension, but Leftwich will miss two to four weeks after a sprained MCL to his left knee in the second quarter of Thursday night’s final preseason game.
Many felt that Dixon earned his way to being the starter anyway, but now the QB has the door open to show those that felt he should have been the starter all along that they were right.
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George H
September 6, 2010 at 8:09 pm
Im excited to see how Dixon responds to being the starter especially in a run oriented offense. He can run the bootleg as well as play-action. Last year thats when he was at his best during the Ravens game. Im hoping that some pressure is off his shoulders now that hes named the starter because we all know how poorly he played when he started the 3rd preseason game. Im gonna chulk that one up to nerves because the starting job was very much up for grabs at that point. However, the success of Dixon and the Steelers will rely heavily on the o-line on sunday and if the can open up the necessary holes for the ground game to control the clock.
larry
September 6, 2010 at 8:33 pm
Would have rather had Batch in there.
DrGeorge
September 7, 2010 at 11:28 am
Given the continuing pass protection problems of the O-line (they are better, but still inconsistent), Dixon is the better choice at QB, only because he runs well enough to keep defenses honest. But a porous O-line is a bad reason to choose a mobile QB. The O-line is the key to offensive performance on Sunday, especially in the red zone. Keep an eye on the ratio of points scored versus times in the red zone. We kicked far too many field goals last year. Without Ben, the team will have to run the ball on demand to win.
The choice of QB does not change the over all calculus for winning: the defense must play well for four quarters and find a way to cover short routes. So far, it remains a work in progress.