Will Cowher holster Tommy Gun?

Tommy Maddox promised he won't jump off a cliff. The debate becomes whether or not Bill Cowher will, or should, push him.

Maddox has thrown interceptions returned for touchdowns in successive games, the most recent a 75-yard effort by Cleveland's Daylon McCutcheon in a 33-13 Browns' win Sunday night. Maddox completed less than half his attempts vs. the Browns, for a net of 124 yards.

The knee-jerk reaction is to change the quarterback as the cure-all for the Steelers' ills, as if that would improve the ability of the offensive line to block, or the defense to slow down opposition passing attacks, or special teams to cover punts and kickoffs.

The idea of quarterback change gains currency when the backup is a local guy, Charlie Batch, who is an experienced NFL performer, even though he didn't throw a single pass last season for the Steelers, and lost his job after the previous season at Detroit.

Batch bumped fists with Maddox in the Steelers locker room following the Cleveland loss, a show of solidarity from a man who's been there. Then he tried to slip quietly out the door, but soon was engulfed by a circle of writers. One wanted to know if Batch was surprised that minutes earlier Cowher had indicated he didn't anticipate a quarterback change.

"No," Batch said. "Right now Tommy is the quarterback of this team. I think sometimes you have games like this. I don't think it's fair to really put it on one position, because we're in this together and there's a lot of blame to go around."

There is plenty of blame, indeed, but quarterbacks are lightning rods on losing football teams, which the Steelers have become with this two-game skid that has dropped them to 2-3.

"It's like that, especially when we're not scoring more points," Batch agreed. "When you don't score enough points to win the game, obviously we're going to have to shoulder the blame just because we're the guys leading this offense."

Cowher would seem to have three viable options.

He can take the opportunity of his weekly news conference today to reaffirm that Maddox will start again Sunday at Denver.

He can give a qualified endorsement, saying Maddox will start, but adding that he might not finish.

Or, third, Cowher, could say he's thought about it and has decided Batch should start, just as a change of pace.

Cowher has a history of both blind allegiance and quick triggers in quarterback dealings. He also has a history of rallying teams from slow starts and making the tough decisions of whether to make changes to shake up a team, or stand pat to avoid the appearance of panic.

"I guess it is a tough call," Cowher said. "The thing you've got to do is be very objective about it, sit back and look at it. It starts with me. I've got to do a better job of preparing this football team. I recognize that. We've all got to look within. And, like I said, it starts with me at the top. We'll sit back and do that, assess everything we're doing and how we're doing it. And we'll go from there."

Maddox was in a testy mood following the Sunday game, particularly when asked about his confidence, a question that elicited this: "What do you think I am going to do• Jump off a cliff• Yes, I have confidence in myself, and in my teammates."

Maddox had cooled down slightly Monday.

"Yeah, it's frustrating," he said. "I'm not going to sit here and say I'm not frustrated."

But there's nobody on the Steelers, Maddox emphasized, including himself, who has lost confidence.

We'll soon find out if that holds true for Cowher.