Preview Miami At Pittsburgh

Big Ben underwent an appendectomy on the weekend, and he’s been ruled out for Week 1. That means the Steelers will be relying on backup quarterback Charlie Batch when they take to the field on Thursday in their season-opening contest versus the Miami Dolphins at Heinz Field.

Roethlisberger, of course, was involved in a frightening motorcycle accident back on June 12 that resulted in a fractured jaw, broken nose, the loss of two teeth, and a huge cut in the back of his head. Hours of surgery followed, but a speedy recovery had Big Ben back on the field for Pittsburgh in time for training camp and preseason contests.

However, Roethlisberger began feeling sick on Sunday, was checked out by the doctors, and the procedure was performed before his appendix ruptured. The amount of time the QB will miss is up in the air - some have suggested only one week, others feel that he won’t be able to play until the third week - but he’s definitely sitting out Thursday.

That’s bad news for Pittsburgh, who can’t expect the same performance from Batch that they’d get from Roethlisberger. And the Steelers were already struggling to move the ball - they were one of only two teams to go winless during the preseason (the Washington Redskins were the other), and they scored only 43 points over those four losses. The rival Cincinnati Bengals, in contrast, piled up 131 points over four contests.

So clearly the Steelers are hoping that their offense can kick it into gear on Thursday night, even without their top guy at quarterback. The team got some good news on the weekend when Hines Ward was pronounced fit to play against Miami in Week 1; the wide receiver and top downfield threat had missed some time with a hamstring injury.

The Dolphins have some questions on offense of their own - the biggest one being whether new starting quarterback Daunte Culpepper can hold up over an entire season. Culpepper is still recovering from serious knee surgery, although he was fit enough to play in the preseason. Miami is relying on Culpepper not only to stay healthy and lead them to the playoffs, but to help them avoid turning to Joey Harrington at the QB spot.

Miami was 2-2 in the preseason, but it’s their 9-7 record from 2005 that has the fans in South Florida optimistic. A late surge saw the Dolphins fall just short of a playoff spot in the AFC last year,

and they were only one game back of the AFC East champs from New England. Culpepper’s addition could be enough to boost them to the next level.

Or it could be Ricky Williams’ subtraction that does the trick. The suspended running back is spending the year up north on the Toronto Argonauts’ injured list, so Ronnie Brown will be the team’s undisputed top guy in the backfield. Brown is expected to quickly develop into a star. Newly-acquired Lee Suggs could serve as Brown’s backup.

So who do the oddsmakers like in this one? The Steelers were listed as a four point favorite a few days ago, but Roethlisberger’s appendectomy has shifted the line to Even at VIP.com. A leak here or there that Batch is looking good in practice could get bettors to tilt the line in Pittsburgh’s favor again, but many will probably be avoiding this game altogether. The total for the Thursday nighter is sitting at 34.5 points.

Week 1 of the season starts in earnest on Sunday, with 13 games on the schedule for that day. Sunday’s biggest favorites are the New England Patriots, who are set at -9 at home against the Buffalo Bills (with a total of 41 points). Other big Sunday lines include San Francisco at Arizona (-7.5), Seattle (-6) at Detroit, and Atlanta at Carolina (-5). Minnesota at Washington (-4.5) and San Diego (-3) at Oakland will go on Monday night.

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