August 13, 2008

The Legend of Mikey Potts...

[Original photo credit - Mike Potts' roomate]
Hey guys, guess what? The Steelers signed "former" washout Jaguars and Falcons QB, Byron Leftwich on Sunday. Of course, you may have heard this from Tobiathan already. Him or the Post-Gazette, that is.

With Charlie Batch possibly gone the way of Matt Leinart, the front office obviously felt less than comfortable with our only backup options being rookies, Dennis Dixon and Mike Potts. And while I can't say I blame them for wanting to bring in a guy who's already cut his teeth in the league, I have to think there were better options than Byron Leftwich...and I don't mean Daunte Culpepper.

Nonetheless, the good news is (as I mentioned in the comments yesterday) - he'll still be a back up. And he's been a starter for two different teams (albeit a mediocre one). So should we need him to step in, hopefully he would be capable enough not to fumble a snap at the end of regulation, sending the game into OT, where he would throw a game-ending interception to Rashean Mathis. PS - If you didn't get that joke, you should leave this blog immediately.

But who wants to talk about Byron Leftwich for an entire post? Come on, I wouldn't waste your precious time like that. You should know better.

What I really wanna discuss today is - undrafted and unknown rookie QB, Mike Potts. Sure, could be cut by the time I hit publish. But that doesn't mean he doesn't deserve a little love from this here Steelers blog.

Not much is known [by me] about Potts, except that he's a 23-year old William and Mary product [from Middletown, Delaware] who Tecmo and Bob decided should be referred to as "Mikey" Potts. So I did a little investigating. Because what else do I have to do, I write a sports blog. What I discovered was a list of Mike Potts' on these here interwebs that may or may not be the same Mikey Potts, the Steelers QB.

Here they are in no particular order...

1. Mike Potts, President and CEO of AirDefense
It'd be pretty tough for a 21-year old to have become President and CEO of any company, what with that four year party they call college going on. But hey, it worked for Mark Zuckerberg. So why not Mikey Potts?

2. Mike Potts, former Milwaukee Brewer.
A 7.15 ERA in 45 career innings?!?! This can NOT be Mikey Potts. Mikey Potts would definitely have been 3.00 or lower. Next!

3. Mike Potts, Arkansas-Based Gynecologist extraordinaire.
Now, I'm not trying to take anything away from the Mercy Women's Clinic. I'm sure they do great work and they seem like a nice, helpful organization. But Mikey Potts, the Gynecologist, is a hell of a thought. I mean, if you can stare at well, you know what, all day, surely you can avoid the Browns pass rush (or lack thereof). That, or stare at Ben's ass all day (see picture above).

4. Mike Potts, Head of Jonesville Community Schools.
Your guess is as good as mine? I can't even think of a way to tie this one to Mikey Potts. Oops.

5. Mike Potts, accomplice to making Coke overflow with Mentos.
I'm pretty sure Mikey ain't British. So this scenario is highly unlikely. But as a recent college grad, it's certainly possible that he played around with one of history's most notorious at-home science experiments. How does this qualify him to be a Steelers QB? Because only smart people know how to make soda shoot out of a bottle with mentos. Actually, I think that's one of the requirements for entry into MENSA.

So there you have it. A bunch of random crap that you probably didn't need to, nor care to read about. As usual, my apologies for this gigantic waste of time.

And someone, please help out the REAL Mike Potts with his Wikidpedia page. That shit is hurtin'.

Questions for you this morning...
1. You guys have any thoughts on Leftwich?
2. Anyone think he'll be a positive asset? Negative asset?
3. Most importantly, which of the Mike Potts' above could be OUR Mike Potts?

10 comments:

domski43 said...

My sources have revealed that Mike Potts is pushing Big Ben for the number one quarterback job. Supposedly the kid is unsackable.

Honestly,I really like the Leftwich signing. Ben and Byron played against each other in college and are friends off the field. I love Charlie Batch, but how much longer can he be considered a reliable quarterback? Leftwich is still young, has a strong arm, and has plenty of game experience. I love his toughness (does anyone remember the game when he played at Marshall where he injured his leg and continued to play, while his offensive line carried him down the field? youtube it...thats heart) During Byron's time with the Jags they were rebuilding and his receivers couldnt catch a cold. Instead of causing a qb controversy Del Rio let him go and he got picked up by Hotlanta. How quick are you going to judge a quarterback who has to play under that offensive line (built for Mike Vick) in Atlanta w/ no running backs, wide receivers, or team for that matter?

Hes no Brady Quinn, but he will work.

Culpepper wanted to compete for the number one qb spot w/ big ben = retard

Name another quarterback out there better than Leftwich who is currently available.

tecmo said...

Vinny Testaverde

Jeff George

Eric Crouch

Tim Couch

Kordell

Joe Namath






/dripping with sarcasm

tecmo said...

Oh, and Mikey Potts

Cotter said...

domski ~ Yeah, I hear you about Leftwich. At first I was super anti-Leftwich. But upon a few day's reflection, I'm realizing that you might be right. Although when I said I thought there had to be better options out there I didn't necessarily mean someone who used to be a starter somewhere else. I meant maybe there's someone flying under the radar who could be an entirely capable backup. Still, like you said, and I said in the post, he has the experience, which is key.

tec ~ What? No Chad Hutchinson? Sarcasm is fun...

domski43 said...

Tim Couch deserves another chance....is Charlie Frye still available?

I wouldnt rule out Bubby Brister

Anonymous said...

Great read! I actually liked the BL pickup. He seems to fit in better than Culpepper would've. And hopefully he can stop himself from breaking his ankles the first time out because with the lack of protection for #7, I'm guessing BL will be starting around oh game 3.

Anonymous said...

Byron was a great pickup and Mike Potts ???? enough said about him. BL will be a great addition to the steelers offense as a backup and barring a major let down Dennis Dixon will be the 3rd QB.

Brady Quinn in my opinion will be a big bust why do you think the guy lasted that long. He will not be another Tom Brady trust me and Tim Couch will be given chances by several teams before people realize he will not make a NFL QB.

Like I said on another post a lot of people questioned if Charlie Batch was worth looking when the steeler's took him he had the same problem no line or receivers.

Anonymous said...

OK...as usual, i'm late to the par-tay.

But...i still don't like Leftwich. As soon as he thinks he's healthy he'll start whining about playing time. DelRio cut him with some true animosity, based on By-ron's utter inability to keep his mouth shut when things didn't go his way. God forbid Ben struggles and he gets...uh..."replaced".

Laugh now, but we'll see. I hope i'm wrong, but i think Leftwich is trouble. Sure: he can throw the ball. He's even a decent QB. But he has some character "quirks".

At risk of being pigeonholed by the Gods ogf Political Correctness i'll go ahead and say that the guy isn't afraid to play ANY card he thinks will get him what he wants.

And- he's faster than frozen molasses. With our O-line that spells trouble "B-Y-R-O-N".

Just pray that Big Bem Godsend stays well and healthy.

Anonymous said...

When I went to training camp the other week, Batch was the first player to come down onto the field. I screamed "we love you Charlie!". He looked at me and just smiled....and I meant it, I just love the guy, both as a player and a person. He has come through for the team, most notable our Super Bowl year, and he's a really all-around nice guy.

Leftwich - who knows. It was slim pickins, and he was the lessers of the two losers....er, I mean evils.

I will say this though -- the O Line needs to eat an extra bowl of Wheaties on gameday....maybe fortified with steriods?....ack.

Cotter said...

domski ~ Bubby. [Redacted]. Brister. Classic!

anonymous ~ Thanks for the comment and the kind words! Though I sincerely hope you're wrong about BL starting by Week 3. As good of a backup as he could be, I doubt he'd be able to carry us to the playoffs...let alone through them to the Super Bowl.

scsteeler ~ Thanks for the comment as well! I like how you turned your comment into a knock on Brady Quinn, haha. Always appreciated here at OFTOT.

tobiathan ~ I doubt BL will complain about playing time. Only because, he pretty much knows the best he'll get with the Steelers is second fiddle to Big Ben. He's publicly acknowledged that, while at the same time criticizing Culpepper for thinking he could come in and impress the Steelers into giving him a starting job.

christy ~ I'm a big Batch fan, myself. He's been all we needed and more as a backup. And he's a home town guy, which makes me love him even more. As for the O-Line, yeah, Wheaties laced with steroids is probably putting it lightly.