Steelers Sign Veteran Offensive Tackle D’Anthony Batiste (Embernate Waived Injured)

[RuthlessBurgher]

Steelers Sign Veteran Offensive Tackle D’Anthony Batiste
Posted 28 minutes ago

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed veteran free agent offensive tackle D’Anthony Batiste to a one-year contract, the team announced today.

Batiste was undrafted in 2004 out of Louisiana-Lafayette and played one season for the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings in the Arena Football League’s developmental league. He was signed by the Edmonton Eskimos during the Canadian Football League’s preseason in 2006, but was released prior to the start of the regular season.

Batiste signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an unrestricted free agent in 2006. He has also spent time with the Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins, Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals. He has played in 37 games and made 14 starts in his NFL career.

To make room for Batiste on the roster, the Steelers placed rookie guard Nik Embernate on the Waived/Injured List.

[winwithd]

I've read that this is one of the few players who actually rated LOWER than Guy Whimper in pass protection last year. Talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel.

[Discipline of Steel]

The [URL="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/pittsburgh-steelers"]Pittsburgh Steelers[/URL] have signed offensive tackle [URL="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/players/2136/d-anthony-batiste"]D'Anthony Batiste[/URL] to an undisclosed contract, [URL="http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Steelers-Sign-Veteran-Offensive-Tackle-D%E2%80%99Anthony-Batiste/f069afbc-d551-4dc4-8310-56f87a486bec"]according to a press release from the team[/URL]. The 31-year-old spent the last three years with the [URL="http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/teams/arizona-cardinals"]Arizona Cardinals[/URL].
Batiste served as a backup for most of his five-year career, but was pressed into starting duty last season when Levi Brown went down with an injury. The results were not pretty, either, because Batiste gave up 12 quarterback sacks, 35 hurries and graded out as one of the worst linemen in the league [URL]http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2013/8/3/4585730/danthony-batiste-contract-steelers[/URL]

[Gus]

Maybe they brought him in so they could say to the guys fighting for a roster or ps spot,"Hey, if you suck as bad as this guy, then don't come back"

[Slapstick]

Who else was coming in at this point?

[hawaiiansteel]

Interest in D'Anthony Batiste seems strange for the Steelers

By Neal Coolong on Aug 3 2013



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.

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.

[URL]http://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2013/8/3/4585012/steelers-offensive-tackle-depth-workout-danthony-batiste[/URL]

[steeler_fan_in_t.o.]

Steelers Sign Veteran Offensive Tackle D’Anthony Batiste
Posted 28 minutes ago

The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed veteran free agent offensive tackle D’Anthony Batiste to a one-year contract, the team announced today.

Batiste was undrafted in 2004 out of Louisiana-Lafayette and played one season for the Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings in the Arena Football League’s developmental league. He was signed by the Edmonton Eskimos during the Canadian Football League’s preseason in 2006, but was released prior to the start of the regular season.

Batiste signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an unrestricted free agent in 2006. He has also spent time with the Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins, Denver Broncos and Arizona Cardinals. He has played in 37 games and made 14 starts in his NFL career.

To make room for Batiste on the roster, the Steelers placed rookie guard Nik Embernate on the Waived/Injured List.

I don't know what is least impressive about this guy:

- That he played in the Arena Football League's developmental league (one step above the lingerie league)
- That he was cut by the Edmonton Eskimos
- Or that he has spent the last three years with the Cardinals

[Slapstick]

He's been in the NFL for several years and has started...

[steelfin]

He's been in the NFL for several years and has started...

That may be true...but he is in the bottom of the pack..certainly nothing to be impressed with.

That just illustrates the depth of our talent at OL at this point in the season (early)...

[Slapstick]

The third OT is supposed to be All Pro?

[steelfin]

Would be nice...

I am not convinced we have a LT capable of protecting Ben this season.

Would much rather have Starks on the roster than Whimper or this guy...

[Slapstick]

Would be nice...

I am not convinced we have a LT capable of protecting Ben this season.

Would much rather have Starks on the roster than Whimper or this guy...

Me too...but that was up to Max if he wanted to be #3 in Pitt or #1 in SD...

[DukieBoy]

So, does "Waived - Injured" result in the Steelers cutting ties to Embernate, or do they retain rights to bring him back later this season or next season?

[phillyesq]

I know that there is not much left at this piont in the year, but I'd like to think the Steelers could do better than Batiste. For starters, it appears that Winston Justice and Sean Locklear are two guys who are available would present more competition.

[phillyesq]

So, does "Waived - Injured" result in the Steelers cutting ties to Embernate, or do they retain rights to bring him back later this season or next season?

I believe this is correct. Instead of putting him on IR, where they would retain his rights but be responsible for his salary, it looks like he was released.