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Interest in D'Anthony Batiste seems strange for the Steelers

Depth at offensive tackle was a concern going into this season, and the signing of Guy Whimper did little to lift that concern. Even holding a workout for Batiste, the college teammate of Steelers CB Ike Taylor, seems like another step in the wrong direction.

By Neal Coolong
Tim Fuller-US PRESSWIRE

The idea of the Steelers holding enough interest in free agent offensive tackle D'Anthony Batiste seems absurd.

Even dangerous.

It's bizarre enough it leads to the speculation the workout is only being done as a way to show those currently in camp the team is not pleased with their performance to this point, and they aren't above bringing someone else in to vie for a spot.

According to Pro Football Focus, Batiste allowed 35 quarterback hurries and 12 sacks in 425 pass blocking attempts last season. So outside of giving Cardinals quarterbacks post traumatic stress disorder, it's unclear what Batiste provided last season.

Oddly, he's one of the few tackles who can boast even less effective play in comparison with former Jaguars OT Guy Whimper, who was signed to a 1-year deal by the Steelers this offseason.

Replacing Whimper with < Whimper doesn't seem like a wise strategy. In fact, he seems more like a guy center Maurkice Pouncey recommended to play, just without the arrest history.

In the wake of the loss of Nik Embernate, most likely for the season, the Steelers shifted undrafted free agent Mike Golic Jr. from right tackle to the interior, where he played in college, so a move to sign a tackle can be seen simply as getting another tackle in the door.

Batiste, a former teammate of Steelers cornerback Ike Taylor at Louisiana-Lafayette, has a career that seems more like one of a nomadic country singer than a serviceable NFL player. He's been everywhere from the low-level version of the Arena League to the NFL, bouncing from Dallas to Carolina to Atlanta to Washington to Denver and finally, to Arizona, as an injury replacement last season.

Current options aren't going to be great, and they aren't, but rest assured, Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert will be actively watching the waiver wire waiting for other options to present themselves, if, in fact, the team wants to add another tackle.

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