Steelers’ Duce Could Be Loose On The Market

Friday’s preseason game at Lincoln Financial Field will match up the Philadelphia Eagles against the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Philadelphia fans will likely see the last time starters for both teams will play this preseason, along with seeing an awful lot of an old friend. Former Eagles running back Duce Staley makes a return to Philadelphia—but not with the same status that he or the Pittsburgh Steelers would hope he would bring back to Philly this preseason.

With the retirement of Jerome Bettis, the Steelers have an opening for a burly back to be the thunder to running back Willie Parker’s lightning. Staley was supposed to assume that role alongside Bettis when he came to Pittsburgh in 2004, but after only recording a total of 978 rushing yards in his two seasons with the Steelers (with only 148 yards in the 2005 season because of a hamstring injury), Staley is on the hot seat in the steel city for not only a starting spot, but a roster spot.

What the Steelers organization and fans expected from Staley was the player who recorded over 1000 yards in 2002 for the Eagles, but they are getting much less. Staley has been a sideline staple, not dressing for games as a result of injury. He is healthy but has looked extremely sluggish and slow in camp this season. Many observers believe he looks overweight (rumored to have gained 15 plus pounds) and rusty from missing most of the 2005 season.

In the Steelers first preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals, Duce rushed behind the Steelers backup squad, picking up only 14 yards on seven attempts. His poor running was noticeable to many, including Pittsburgh head coach Bill Cower who soon after said that Duce would play a more significant role running behind the starting offensive line in the second preseason game. This was clearly a move so the Steelers’ coaching staff could see more out of Staley, whose poor running of late could simply of been an anomaly caused by rust or a trend caused by aging. Unfortunately for Staley and the Steelers, it appeared to be the latter.

Five days after the first preseason game in Arizona, the Steelers played their home opener against the Minnesota Vikings, giving Duce a chance to prove that he can move like his old self. Willie Parker, the Steelers’ starting running back came out after one series leaving Duce the remaining time with the starting offensive line. Duce’s production against the Vikings was similar to his first preseason game netting only 15 yards on five carries. On the plus side, he showed that he still had excellent blocking skills, making some key blocks on pass plays.

The lack of potency shown by Staley is accentuated by the fact that there are younger backs also in line for Jerome Bettis’ spot, and they are faring much better early on than Duce. Tailback Verron Haynes is the player who is planned to challange Staley for the short yardage, second back position, but the bigger challange has been from a relative unknown, 6′, 255-pound fullback named John Kuhn. Kuhn, who was a star rusher at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania, was an undrafted free agent who spent all of last year on the Steelers’ practice squad. He spent the entire third quarter against the Vikings playing as tailback and had eight rush attempts for 30 yards. On one rush, Kuhn tied Staley’s total yards for the game by rushing for 11 yards on one play. Playing Kuhn at tailback instead of his practice position at fullback enabled Steelers’ coaches to see if Kuhn had what it would take to be the short yardage goal line replacement for the retired Bettis. If they believe a younger, less expensive player like Kuhn could replace the legendary “bus,” Duce Staley could be without a job by the end of camp.

The next two preseason games for Staley are going to be important for him to show he still has what it takes to be a go-to running back in the NFL, and there is no better place for him to show it than his former home at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. If Staley continues his decline and gets cut from the Steelers’ roster, Philadelphia may wonder: could Duce return to Philly? The Eagles are in desperate need of a short yardage back and depth in the backfield, they also have been actively pursuing a running back, notably trying out former Carolina Panthers rusher, Stephen Davis. The Eagles also have the strange habit of accepting back old players on the cheap who have left the organization in pursuit of a big contract, only to return with hat in hand and something to prove.

With the right motivation and a chance to be a factor in the offense, as far fetched as it sounds, a motivated Staley could be a nice fit on this Eagles team as selective role-player. But don’t tell that to Dorsey Levens—he might be waiting for a call.