NBC Sports executives are probably a bit frustrated. When Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and Miami quarterback Daunte Culpepper both recovered from recent injuries in miraculous fashion, NBC thought it had a premiere quarterback battle for its official debut as the NFL’s top prime time showcase. Roethlisberger’s emergency appendectomy earlier this week means that NBC gets to showcase the battle of Culpepper and … um … Charlie Batch. Not quite as exciting.

But it is still the first NFL game of the season, and it still matches the Super Bowl champions against a team considered by many to be a Super Bowl favorite for 2006. It should at least be more entertaining than last year’s one-sided Oakland-New England season opener.

The Steelers went four games without Roethlisberger last year, but they actually passed more often in those games than they did when he was healthy, so don’t expect offensive coordinator Ken Wisenhunt to restrain his offense just because he doesn’t have his top quarterback. In fact, the best way to attack Miami is probably through the air, since a young and unproven secondary is the weakness of the Miami defense. The Steelers can have success in the air as long as Batch doesn’t wilt against the talented Miami pass rush.

There are questions regarding Pittsburgh’s post-Jerome Bettis running game, but the Steelers won’t miss Bettis in this game. It is much easier to run outside on the Dolphins than to run inside; in fact, Miami allowed the fewest yards a carry of any team on runs up the middle, and the center of their defense is even stronger this year with the addition of veteran defensive tackle Dan Wilkinson.

When Miami has the ball, all eyes will be on Culpepper, making a faster-than-expected comeback from a gruesome knee injury. But equally important to Miami’s fate is a player of much lesser fame, guard Bennie Anderson. In last year’s playoffs, the Steelers beat Indianapolis by blitzing their outside linebackers from a position wide of the tackles. The Colts tried to pull their guards out to block the blitzing linebackers, and failed miserably. If the Dolphins try the same tactic, they will likewise fail; Anderson may be the worst pulling guard in the league. The alternative is to hope the line can communicate well enough that the guards know to pick up the defensive ends, with the tackles shifting outside to take on the linebackers.

All those blitzing outside linebackers leave things open in the flat, however. Since Miami running back Ronnie Brown is a gifted receiver as well as runner, the Dolphins should be able to take advantage of Pittsburgh’s difficulty containing passes to running backs.

The Steelers should also expect to see a steady diet of passes to Chris Chambers. Chambers normally lines up on the right side, as does cornerback Ike Taylor, who last year was heavily targeted by opposing offenses. According to our game charting data from 2005, Taylor allowed twice as many yards a pass when covering the opposition’s top receiver (such as Chambers) compared to what he allowed when covering the opposition’s number two receiver (such as Marty Booker).

Despite the complicated Pittsburgh blitz scheme and a pumped-up Heinz Field crowd, Culpepper should show he’s healthy and ready to win some games. Just not this one. The Steelers believe their backup quarterback can make the throws against the Miami secondary, and if he can, they should begin their championship defense with a win.

Mr. Schatz is the editor in chief of FootballOutsiders.com.