Article published August 24, 2006
Jacobs not stunning the Steelers
PITTSBURGH - Omar Jacobs has struggled to run the Pittsburgh Steelers offense.
The rookie quarterback from Bowling Green also has had a hard time comprehending the playbook.
Sometimes, he wonders if it is printed in a foreign language.
"It still has my head spinning, but it's not spinning quite as fast as it was before," Jacobs said.
His transition from star college quarterback to the NFL has not gone nearly as smoothly as it has for Toledo's Bruce Gradkowski.
Not at this point.
Rookie Omar Jacobs has completed 8 of 14 passes for 89 yards and one TD in two Steelers exhibition games.
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Jacobs, a fifth-round pick who bypassed his senior year at Bowling Green to enter the NFL draft, has looked sluggish in two exhibition games for the Super Bowl champions.
He is locked in a battle with first-year pro Shane Boyd for the No. 3 quarterback spot, with the winner of the derby likely ending up on the practice squad.
Jacobs has completed 8 of 14 passes for 89 yards and one touchdown in preseason appearances against the Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings.
Boyd, who played in NFL Europe last spring, has hit on 14 of 33 passes for 150 yards. He has been intercepted once.
Let's be perfectly clear.
The Steelers did not draft Jacobs to be their starting quarterback, but they did expect him to be better than he has been.
"We haven't been able to generate much offense with Omar or with Shane," Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher said.
The general consensus is that the Steelers will keep Jacobs - taken one round ahead of Gradkowski - over Boyd, an undrafted free agent from Kentucky.
Keep in mind: Ben Roethlisberger, a first-round pick in 2004, and the unforgettable Kordell Stewart, a second-rounder in 1995, are the only Pittsburgh quarterbacks chosen higher than Jacobs in the Steelers' last 16 draft classes.
But the 6-foot-4, 224-pound Jacobs, who has a quirky, three-quarters throwing motion, needs to get up to speed in a hurry.
Those in the Steeler Nation are starting to wonder if there is any light at the end of the tunnel for Jacobs, or if it is pitch black.
There's no question, Jacobs would have benefited by returning to Bowling Green for his final season.
"It's going to take a while to learn the playbook - you can't learn the whole thing in one year," he said. "Ben and [backup] Charlie [Batch] are still learning things from the playbook. I'm learning from those guys - they're great guys - and I'm just planning to get better."
The Steelers drafted Jacobs in April instead of Gradkowski, a fifth-year senior from Pittsburgh, because they believed Jacobs had more potential to improve long-range because he came out early, and because he is nearly three inches taller.
Jacobs' 64.5 career completion percentage is second in Mid-American Conference history to Gradkowski's 71.2. Remember, both Big Ben (Miami) and Batch (Eastern Michigan) also went to MAC schools.
While Jacobs has floundered, Gradkowski has directed three scoring drives in Tampa Bay's two preseason games.
He completed 11 of 13 passes for 104 yards and two touchdowns against the New York Jets and 11 of 14 for 193 yards and one score against the Miami Dolphins. He also tossed one interception.
Gradkowski appears to have the inside track on Tampa Bay's No. 2 job, backing up starter Chris Simms.
Jacobs, meanwhile, is fighting hard to earn a spot on Pittsburgh's roster.
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