“Are you ready to be a Steeler?”
Dennis Dixon had just had a game of pool interrupted by Pittsburgh Steelers’ head coach Mike Tomlin with the Pittsburgh Steelers on the clock. Dixon was about to become a Pittsburgh Steeler.
The Steelers drafting Dixon was an enigma. It wasn’t a surprise, since Dixon had visited the Steelers South Side complex on April 8th, just a few weeks before the draft. The Steelers’ front office was obviously impressed with Dixon as a person, and impressed with how far he had come after tearing his ACL during his senior season at Oregon. It was a surprise, since the Steelers had just signed Ben Roethlisberger to a deal worth $102 million.
Can Dennis Dixon make this team? Can Dennis Dixon play quarterback if he does, or would he be the next Slash? Can he become that elusive and explosive quarterback that was leading his Ducks to the Pac 10 title before the injury? Or…
…did the Steelers waste a fifth round draft pick on a position they didn’t necesarily need, on a player that isn’t necessarily ready to play?
