In a span of just a couple of strange days, the Steelers went from feeling very good about their situation at quarterback to wondering what to do now that backup Charlie Batch is out for the season.
Matt Freed, Post-Gazette
Backup quarterback Charlie Batch will miss the entire 2004 season following knee surgery.
What: Steelers at Lions preseason game.Where: Ford Field, DetroitWhen: 7:30 p.m. todayTV/Radio: KDKA/WDVE-FM (102.5) and WBGG-AM (970) and the Steelers radio network.On the eve of their preseason opener in Detroit, the Steelers discovered the worst possible news -- Batch's injured left knee was damaged more severely than an MRI revealed, forcing the team to place the 30-year-old quarterback from Steel Valley High School on injured reserve.
But that wasn't the end of the sobering news. They also discovered the market for obtaining an experienced NFL quarterback is slimmer than Laura Flynn Boyle. That, in part, is why they settled on signing former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kurt Kittner, a third-year player who has been waived by four teams just since January.
Kittner, who will be in uniform when the Steelers play the Lions at 7:30 p.m. today at Ford Field, was released by the Falcons in January, signed and waived by the Cincinnati Bengals in April and signed and waived by the New York Giants in May.
Most recently, he spent two weeks in training camp with the New England Patriots, then was released again.
"The more you try to look into why it happened, the more it frustrates you," Kittner said. "It's in other people's hands."
Kittner, a fifth-round pick by the Falcons in 2002, might not be with the Steelers very long. Not if they want to find an experienced quarterback to play backup for Tommy Maddox. The Steelers brought Kittner in for a physical yesterday morning and thought he would merely be an extra arm in training camp while Batch took two to three weeks to rest his knee.
That, though, was before they learned an arthroscopic procedure yesterday revealed further damage to Batch's left knee, the same knee that was surgically repaired three years ago. He had arthroscopic surgery and was placed on injured reserve, ending his season.
Now Coach Bill Cowher must decide if he wants to go into the regular season with two backups -- No. 1 pick Ben Roethlisberger and Brian St. Pierre -- who have never appeared in an NFL game. Even Kittner's experience is sketchy, appearing in just seven games last season with the Falcons.
"I just want to come in and make the most of the opportunity," Kittner said. "Any opportunity is a good opportunity."
Kittner played in seven games with the Falcons, but he started four after Michael Vick was lost to a season-ending injury and his replacement, Doug Johnson, was 1-8 as a starter. With no previous NFL experience, Kittner completed 44 of 114 passes (38.6 percent) for 391 yards, two touchdowns and six interceptions.
The Steelers, though, do not have a lot of unemployed quarterbacks from which to choose. The best of the smallish group is former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter, who was waived two weeks ago and is still available. Also for hire: Chad Hutchinson, who played for Dallas; Shane Matthews, who played last season in Cincinnati; Chris Redman, who played with the Baltimore Ravens and is still recovering from shoulder surgery; and Jeff George, known around the NFL as a coach-killer.
Maybe the dearth of quarterbacks is why Kittner has been signed and released by four teams in eight months.
"I'm just coming in and trying to learn things," Kittner said. "The decisions go beyond me."
For now, the loss of Batch likely means Roethlisberger will move up to the backup position behind Maddox. Roethlisberger is expected to replace Maddox in the second quarter against the Lions and split the rest of the time with St. Pierre, a fifth-round pick in 2003.
Kittner, who will wear No. 11, will not play against the Lions.
The Steelers thought Batch's knee problems were from the wear and tear of training camp. He had fluid drained from his knee earlier this week. But, when the pain and swelling persisted, he had an MRI Thursday, revealing what coach Bill Cowher termed a "loose body" -- a piece of cartilage from the surface of the bone -- in his knee.
Still, the Steelers were not expecting the worst news when Batch had an arthroscopic procedure yesterday morning to fully assess the damage to his knee.
They got even more bad news when they checked their options.
First Published: August 14, 2004, 4:00 a.m.
