Take it all the way Huntington!!!

I don't know if that light at the end of the tunnel is a glimmer of hope or a sign that the end is near. I do know, however, that regardless of what many think, the Bucs are making some moves and I just want to call Mr. Huntington and tell him to pull the trigger on a deal worth taking the risk on, Pedro Martinez. Yes, I know everyone has probably read or heard about the deal that is possible. Pedro and his agent have requested a $7 million deal. For some reason, this organization is looking at that number like it is surprisingly high? For God's sake we just gave Mr. First Half, Adam LaRoche, 5 million dollars last year and avoided arbitration by giving him just over 7 million this upcoming year. Yet here we are still sitting on all-star Nate McClouth's contract and '08 ace Paul Maholm's contract. Real smart. You want a veteran right-hander on your questionable pitching staff? Pedro can be that answer. Don't hesitate to pull the trigger after seeing what previous managment has done. Who could forget Derek Bell, Jeremy Burnitz, or the 10 million dollar man Matt Morris.
Let's show some real guts and give someone who knows what it's like to win a chance.
Let's Go Bucs!!

My christmas list

Dear Santa,

I know you are really busy this time of the year, but I have a few special requests for you big guy. It is the most wonderful time of the year in the sporting world and these few requests would make it that much better.

1. Have T.O. keep up the good work
Many people are fed up with Owen's mind games and antics. Personally Santa, I love it. I love seeing him continue to make a fool of himself and bring down team after team. Statistically he is one of the best wide outs the National Football League has ever seen, but my god is he an idiot. Jeff Garcia gay? Really T.O? He is married to a playmate of the year. If that's just a cover up, then damn that is the greatest cover up in the history of homosexuality. Then it was on to McNabb and we all know how that ended. Even with your incredible history Owens, you really out did yourself this time. Accusing your QB ("That's my quarterback!!! remember that?) of holding secert meetings with his best friend and roommate Jason Witten? Even I could not think of anything that great. Owens, you brilliant, brilliant man, you do realize that Romo has thrown the ball to you many more times then to his "best friend" this year? Also, rumor has it that you convinced some of the defensive players to take your side on this. That is more ridiculous then the Raven defensive players convinced that Troy Smith should start over Joe Flacco earlier this season. With all that being said Santa, just make sure that this isn't the last of Terrell Owens blowups.

2. Can you get the NHL the respect it deserves?
I understand Santa that coverage on ridiculous stories, such as T.O. and Lebron's Free Agency appeal TWO YEARS FROM NOW takes time away from NHL coverage, but something needs to change. As we near Christmas, the 2008-2009 season has been amazing so far. It just has not been incredible in certain areas of the country either, great hockey is being witnessed EVERYWHERE. Sid and Malkin are tearing up the east coast, filling out the top two in the points race. Boston is proving that there was very good reason for them being a preseason sexy pick. Down south, Craig Anderson is quickly becoming a cult hero in Florida. Circus saves and shut out wins have left Panther fans with a lot of hope this year. San Jose is over in the west coast still looking for a challenger this year. Three loses all year? That is absolutely ridiculous. There is a team in the Midwest banking on the Sharks performing their usual playoff choke. The talented Red Wings are scoring goals at will, but it just kind of surprising there giving up a lot too. Canada has a lot of great teams this year too, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal all have high expectations. It is not much to ask for, but a little R E S P E C T is all I ask. Maybe some coverage on January 1st will help when two original six teams play in Wrigley Field when the up and coming Blackhawks take on the Stanley Cup winning Detroit Red Wings in this years Winter Classic. One can dream.

3. A Lakers/Celtics game on Christmas!
I would love to see these two teams play on Christmas Santa. Both of them are on pace to have over 70 wins as they are just destroying their competition....Oh wait, never mind, they do play on Christmas. Should be a good one.

4. Have the Yankees NOT win the championship.
160 million for C.C.? Really Yankees? Another 80 million for A.J.? I'll give Cashman and company credit that they are finally overpaying the right way.... overpaying for pitching that is. The only problem is these contracts are too ridiculous. Our country is in a recession and your organization paid C.C. enough to buy every hamburger on the planet. It would simply awesome to see the Yankees fail yet again as they attempt to buy a championship. Santa, I don't care what teams wins it, as long as the Yankees do not. (Cubs not winning it either would be A OK with me too)

5. A new pair of shoes would be nice.

6. A FBS PLAYOFF SYSTEM!
Texas has 11 wins with 1 loss. Oklahoma has 11 wins with 1 loss. Texas beat Oklahoma. Texas not in the national championship. Oklahoma plays in the national championship. This system never seems to amaze me. It is very simply college football. A plus one system is as far as you have to go. Usually the top four teams are in the national championship hunt, very rarely is it ever more then that. Simply having the winners of the top two bowls play each other in one extra game will have the rightful team named champion. Will it happen? Probably not, but I know you can work magic Santa.

7. Show Plax where the safety button is.

8. Lastly, after Christmas is over, speed up some time because I'm in the mood for some March Madness!

-Matt Aaron

Vote This Holiday Season

At one point, all three offensive starting spots for the Eastern Conference in the All Star game belonged to Montreal - the game is in Montreal. Crosby has surpassed all three.

Malkin has 45 points. Take two of Montreals candidates, put them together, and they're still joked. Unfortunately, he's only 5th in the voting.

Ridiculous.

Malkin needs your help. He needs your vote.




Who's better? Malkin or Kovalev (19 points)?

Malkin or Tanguay (18 points)?

Malkin or Koivu (22 points)?


Vote NOW!!

Yinz go get 'em in there. If you don't like him as a player, just like him for his English.

Sounds like Lindros after his 10th concussion, but he's getting better...


Potash doesn't have it.

What the Steelers Can and the Cowboys Can Not

After watching the Pittsburgh Steelers 20-13 win over my Dallas Cowboys Sunday, it was clear to me how different these two prestigious franchises have become. You take the Steelers of the 70's and compare them to the Steelers you watch now, there's hardly a difference besides the players names. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, although at times makes his mistakes, wins games.!!! You don't need to like him but you should respect him. He can throw interceptions, fumble the ball, and take sacks, as long as he's winning ...why do you question him? Trust me, i know its not always Ben winning the game. Nobody's going to overlook that DEFENSE!!! If they do, be prepared to get hit because that's what will happen. Another thing the Steelers CAN do is play as a team. You don't see selfish, stupid, money hungry players representing that franchise like the Cowboys have. Three Steeler players have the credentials to represent themselves like you see Chad Johnson, Terrell Owens, and Plaxico Burress do day in and day out. (just to name a few) Hines Ward could go to the sidelines after a Big Ben interception and yell at coordinator's but he doesn't. Troy Polamalu could celebrate after laying a big hit on a running back that gained 25 yards but he doesn't. James Harrison could sack quarterbacks all day, have his head blow up and decide he wants to carry a gun into local night clubs, but he doesn't. The point that I am getting at is that between the Steelers and The Cowboys, its clear who the real team is. It's clear who wins football games. Too many players wanting to play HERO instead of doing the things that win games. The Cowboys cannot win in December check their record. The Cowboys cannot buy championships anymore. The Cowboys cannot play as a team. The Cowboys cannot make the playoffs until they start realizing that even the most talented players wont win you a Super Bowl these days. My hats off to the Defense and RB Tashard Choice for their performances today. That part of the team understood what they needed to do for the Cowboys to win. It just so happened that Tony Romo tried playing hero on plays that he just needed to make a good decision. Terrell Owens was too focused on his birthday party afterwards, that he felt no need to work harder on getting open or blocking in case Tashard broke one. Witten played the way he has been all season and that was by never giving up. I think that the Cowboys don't deserve to make the playoffs this year because they don't know the meaning of TEAM. After all the years those players have played the game its sad to call myself a fan of them. That's all i want to say for this week, maybe in weeks to come I could say better for the boys. Good luck to the Steelers and I hope that close games make them better in January rather than predictable for the playoffs.

NFL Week 14 - Watch out John Anthony

Tyler Graham here, getting things ready for the first official blog of the 2008 NFL season. It's unfortunate that we've started publishing these this late in the season but I figured that I'd post the first blog for all of those betters out there.
Fortunately, there are a number of experts on this site and you can get all of our opinions. Are my opinions the best? I could answer that.....maybe. But I'll tell you what, if you aren't comfortable with mine, then ask the million dollar man with the million dollar plan; John Anthony. His post will be up soon but we will compare notes on Tuesday and see who was on point this week. Let's take a look at this week in the NFL

Thursday San Diego vs. Oakland:
Let's be real, no one needed to post their pick for this game. The way Oakland has been playing this year compared to how bad San Diego needed a victory should have told you that the Chargers would pull an easy victory. Now considering the Raiders lost Jamarcus Russell, who knows what this season will end up like. Let's not put the Raiders down though. Look for their offense to come together soon and build their defense to be as strong as we have known the Raiders franchise to be. But that's another day, or year....

Minnesota at Detroit: Culpepper vs. his old team
Wow, what a joke of a game. As the Vikings prepare for their easiest game remaining this season, don't expect them to overlook the Lions. We all know the Lions are simply playing for pride but the Vikings need to gain a strong lead in the NFC North. As the Bears prep to play the Jaguars at home, they should expect a Chicago victory this week. This means that the Vikings need to maintain focus and win the games they are supposed to win. Following this week the Vikings play the strong Arizona Cardinals followed by the Atlanta Falcons who expect to win out to take the division or take one of the two wild card spots. No need for any more analysis. Expect for 300 yards of total offense between AP and Chester Talylor as well as 3 picks by Culpepper as the Vikings shut down the Lions run offense and force Detroit to pass all day.
Vikings 34-10

Houston at Green Bay(-6) : Battle of disappointing seasons
As both teams sit at 5-7, which team is going to prove they are better than their record. The Green Bay Packers of course, since Houston is probably worse than their record shows. Aside from Mario Williams still proving he was worth the pick (11.5 sacks this season) and Andre Johnson leading the league in receiving yards, the Texans are NOTHING! This team continues to struggle at the quarterback position, healthy or not, and cannot move the ball without giving it to former WVU running back Steve Slaton. Expect Aaron Rodgers to have a Favre-calliber game at Lambeau in below freezing temperatures with a high of just 24 degrees. Good luck playing in that weather against a team that let the Panthers pull out a victory against them in week 13. Oh and don't forget the Texans think they're tough because they "took care of business" against a beat Jacksonville team last Monday.
Green Bay 28-13

Cleveland at Tennessee (-14) : Ken Dorsey will start for Cleveland
I think the title says enough for itself. Expect Albert Haynseworth to be breathing easy on the bench in the second half as the Titans will probably cover the spread and the over before the first half ends. Don't quote me on that last part because we don't know which Titans team will show up. Will it be the gun-slinging, throw 8 plays in a row, Kerry Kollins machine Titans or the two-headed monster Chris Johnson-LeDale White run it donw your throat Titans. Even if Quinn didn't have 2 pins in his hand, he would have a better shot at landing a cameo role in Entourage next season. Titans win big.
Titans 35-17

Cincinnati at Indianapolis (-13.5) : Indy needs the wild card
Really? Indy is fighting the entire AFC East plus the Ravens (not saying the Steelers have clinched just yet) for a wild card slot. They are playing the 1-10-1 Bengals. No need for further explanation.
Colts 24-3

Atlanta at New Orleans (-3): The Burner too hot for the cool Brees
I know, best title for the day. We all know how hot (or cold) Brees has been this season, averaging 322.5 passing yds per game against a defense that has allowed 222 passing yards per game. Atlanta beat this New Orleans team early in November where Matt Ryan was near flawless completing nearly 70% of his passes and the Atlanta defense forced 3 INTs for the leagues leading passing leaders. In one of many must win games for the Falcons, expect them to edge this game out as Micheal Turner will blow everyone away with a big game. Drew Brees will have a good game especially since Deuce will be suspended for the week. Still, the Atlanta offense will be on the field too long and wear that NO defense down until they break.
Atlanta 17-10

Philadelphia at NY Giants (-7) : Don't Reid too much into this game
By the books, these two teams match up pretty well statistcally. In real life, they don't. The Giants know they have this division locked up, but it's a division game! Tom Coughlin loves one thing and one thing only....WINNING! He will not rest a single player until victory is in his hands. Not until he has a little x next to his team's name in the paper with a little subtitle readin "x - clinch home field advantage". The Eagles are going to come out to play this game and after the first series, I think McNabb is going to run to the bench, shoot himself in the leg, just so he doesn't have to get pounded by Justin Tuck any longer. Giants take this one easily, though the score may not show it.
Giants 27-14

Kansas City at Denver (-9) : Tyler Thigpen - Nothing to lose and everything to gain
That is exactly it. Tyler Thigpen will be the X-Factor in this game as he has been improving by the snap. Since his first 2 starts where he threw a combined 4 interceptions, he has thrown only 4 since. On top of that, he has thrown for 13 touchdowns on the season. Do not overlook this Kansas City team that is looking to hold the Broncos back on clinching the division. The Broncos have a touch schedule ahead that includes a strong Carolina Pathers team, a desperate yet legite Buffalo team, and what could be a season-deciding finale against San Diego. I'd say KC straight up but you go ahead and take them with the 9 points if you have any doubts (which you shouldn't).
Chiefs 21-10

Miami at Buffalo (NS): Wild Card for the Wild Cat?
No spread leading into Saturday as the Bills get set to take on the Dolphins at home. Things change as the game approaches but we're here to give you the best updates and just keep you're eye out for the changes as Sunday quickly approaches us. This game will be played in Toronto but expect it to still be a home game for Buffalo. The real deciding factor for this game is going to be who the Bills have starting at quarterback. Trent Edwards is still game time decision so as of now, J.P. Losman is you're starter if you are a Bills fan. My opinion; give Marshawn Lynch the ball otherwise, whoever is at quarterback is going to eat a lot of turf, served MTO by Joey Porter. Miami edges this one out with a quick wild cat offense on the turf and holds the lead over the Patriots.
Miama 17-14

NY Jets(-4) at San Fransisco: "We are not a charity! We cannot give them the game!"
Coach Singletary hits the nail on the head. But the thing that baffles me is that the "hottest team in the league" is favored by 4 points against the 4-8 (2-4 at home) San Fransico 49ers. Trap game, that's what it is. Do not take the 49ers in this game. I know all of my picks this week have been mostly for the favorites but sometimes that happens. The NY Bretts should be able to take this game. Guess what, they still do not have this division locked up! The Jets still need to win every game they possible can because 11-6 may be the best record coming out of the AFC East and it may be 2 teams that have that record. Look for Thomas Jones to have another big game on the ground and the Jets roll past the 49ers
Jets 20-7

New England at Seattle (NS) : Wait for the spread
No matter the spread this week, I look for Seattle to cover. The Patriots are looking back on a tough loss to Pittsburgh and if Julius Jones can help the Seahawks put some sort of run game together, I can see them keeping it close. Matt Cassel has been working with Moss a little extra this week because of the miscues last week. People can say what they want about the weather, but Moss doesn't drop balls like that. Look for this to be a tight game and the Patriots winning by a leg
Patriots 24-21

St. Louis at Arizona (-14)
This game should be a no brainer on who wins the game but the spread is where you can get caught. Tim Hightower will pass Edge this week in carries and yds and lead the Cardinals to a victory but by just how much? Well, let's not forget that the Rams lost to 49ers by 11 so I think the Cardinals can beat them by that plus more than a field goal, especially the way Kurt Warner has been playing.
Cardinals 28-10

Dallas at Pittsburgh (-3) : Romo vs Big Ben? No, Phillips vs. Tomlin
Is Romo good? I can answer that, yeah. But how many of you readers have had a broken bone before? Particularly in the hand? Go out and throw some pigskin with a banged up pinky and see how it feels. Then go out when it's near 20 degrees and it's snowing. Then get smacked by James Harrison and driven into the ground, throwing hand first. Yeah, that's going to hurt. But that's just one of the many factors that will change this game. And that is why this battle is between the coaches. Which coach can lead their team to victory? An injury depleted team in Dallas that is in the midst of a tornado of an NFC wild card hunt vs the number 1 ranked defense in the NFL with many injury problems of their own. Can Romo pick apart the banged up secondary of Pittsburgh and prevent Polamalu from getting his 7th (or 8th) interception of the season? Can a Dallas defense that may not have DeMarcus Ware stop the improved running of Willie Parker and Mewelde Moore? Boy this is by far the game of the week! Felix Jones and Marion Barber most likely out leads to a game where Tony Romo has to show his true talent and lead his team into battle in the Steel City against right now the number 2 seed in the AFC. This is one of many must-win games for Dallas but I cannot see them pulling this out. Pittsburgh is too strong of a team and Dallas is too beat up to compete. I can't see Romo being able to feel his hand by the start of the second quarter let alone be able to throw the ball more than 25 yards. The ball is going to be hard as a rock and the rushing Steelers defense is going to go right for that throwing hand. Expect to see Romo throw at least 2 picks and fumble AT LEAST once. Big Ben won't need to have a big game through the air as he hopefull will throw the ball less than 20 times as the Steelers roll pass the Cowboys
Steelers 24-10

A Look at the Pens and Flyers at the Quarter Point

Whats going on everyone out in hockey land. Dan Fabrizi here writing about the Pens and Flyers and a few surprises and question marks as the calander flips over to December. I'm a huge Pens fan but I will but my biases aside while blogging in order to accomidate everyone who cheers for the Flyers. Saying that, i will start with the Pittsburgh Penguins. I dont think anyone would have thought the Pens would be in the position they are in now given the injuries to star defensemen Sergei Gonchar and Ryan Whitney, but a 14-6-3 record and 4th in the Eastern Conference looks pretty good right now. The New York Rangers lead the Pens by 5 points in the Atlantic Division, but the Pens have 4 games in hand and will meet the Rangers at MSG on Wednesday. The Pens open up a stretch of 7 games in 11 nights, so those 4 games in hand will disappear pretty quickly. The big question on everyone's mind is, "what are the Pens going to do at the trade deadline this year?" Rumors have swirled around about a trade to Atlanta that would send Jordan Staal and Kris Letang to the Thrashers for Ilya Kovalchuk. This trade def. has upsides to it. Kovalchuk only makes 6 million next year, so the Pens wouldnt get killed with a cap hit. Hes a proven goal scorer and someone who would fit nicely on a line with Sidney Crosby. He is also signed through next season so Pittsburgh wouldnt have to deal with another man crush being shattered when he jumps town for another team (what's thats dudes name who did that last summer?)...But lets be honest, are we ready to give up on Jordan Staal? Did that game in Detroit not show Pens fans how valuable he can be to this franchise? I for one liked this trade at first, but also wasnt crazy about letting a 20 year old kid who scored 29 goals in his rookie season and plays 2 ways better than almost anyone in the league (ask Pavel Datsyuk). I think the deciding factor is going to be what Jordan Staal wants from the Penguins once July 1 comes around. Ray Shero is no bullshitter, any Pens fan knows this. I can see that man going to Jordan Staal before the trade dead line and asking him what he thinks hes worth. Depending on what Staal says or whats, may determine his future in Pittsburgh. He absolutely does no deserve Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin contracts, but maybe in his mind, he can get that type of money elsewhere, such as an Atlanta where talent is withering away faster than the attendence at Philips Arena. I for one think the Pens dont exactly need the likes of a Kovalchuk to bring Lord Stanley back to Pittsburgh, but rather a solid 2nd line scorer who can play with the likes of a Miro Satan or a Max Talbot. I used to dislike the idea of Cros and Geno playing together, but when those two can take over the world like they have done the past week, throw Sykora in there, thats a dangerous, damn-near unstoppable line. I think the 3rd line of Staal with TK and Matt Cooke can easily move to the 2nd line, and a 3rd line consisting of a Max Talbot, Miro Satan, and that unnamed scorer we get at the deadline could be pretty dangerous. And what can you say about recently acquired Mike Zigomanis. Is there anyone out there who thinks the Pens win that game in Detroit without Zigo? He won 3 faceoffs that directly resulted in a Pens goal, including a clean win against Zetterberg that resulted in Staal's game-tying goal with under 30 seconds left. I would love to see the Pens make a move to get a scoring winger, but Im not necessarily sold that it has to be a big name guy who makes a ton of money. But lets be honest, none of this really matters come playoff time. The Pens dominated the East last summer going 12-2 and getting scoring from everyone and their mothers. The fact is, that scoring went away against Detroit. You can have your top 2 lines be the best 2 lines in the history of the world, but if you dont get scoring from your 3rd and 4th lines, then you will never beat a complete team like the Pens faced in Detroit last year, and if they plan on getting back this year, will either have to face them or a San Jose team who looks like they might win every game the rest of their lives (20 wins in 24 games...are u serious?) Im excited for the direction that this team is going and...how nasty is that D going to be when Whitters and Gonch get back on the ice? Big ups to Dany Sabourin as well. He's more than holding it down for the Pens while MAF suffers from.....from....what is he hurt from? Anyways, Sabu leads the league with a 1.84 GAA, kinda sounds like a scenario from last season...hopefully Sabu doesnt Conkblock Pittsburgh like some other guy did last summer. I said Pittsburgh would win the Atlantic and the East, can't say Im shying away from those predictions at all (but seriously, how nice is Boston this year?...I wonder who called that one:-o)

Now onto the Philly Flyers, a team that is on absolute fire right now, going 7-1-2 in their last 10 after taking a month (not really) to win their first game. Simone Gagne is a beast right now, easily the comeback player of the year to this point, and Philly is gettin scoring from their big guns such as Richards, Carter (who leads the league with 16 goals), and Knuble, and are about to welcome back their captain Daniel Briere who hopes to return Thursday from injury. Their downfall continues to be their goaltending. Marty Biron does have 8 wins to his credit, but he also sports a 2.95 GAA and a .900 save %, neither of which will win you much in April and May. Philly finds themselves in the thick of things in the Atlantic and East, just 4 points behind Pittsburgh and 9 behind New York with 4 games in hand. Philly sits in the 6 hole in the East trailing Montreal by only 3. Anyone who knows anything about hockey knows that Philly is going to be there at the end of the year due to their over abundance of scoring and their solid defense, but the question in Philly remains, can they put more pucks in then they can keep out? I wouldnt be shocked to see the Flyers make a move for a goalie come trade deadline, say a Nikolai Khabibulin?Thats all for now...everyone knows I can go on for hours...but Ill leave it alone for now. Enjoy your Christmas everyone and hope to hear from your comments. Take care.

The Big Ben Bias

My name is Matt and I have a problem. That problem you ask? I have a serious 'man crush' on one Big Ben Roethlisberger. Anybody that knows me, understands that I have a strong bias for the Pittsburgh Steeler's quarterback. It might be the goatee and the five foot long face or it might be his play on the field. Let it be known, I think he is a lot better than he really is. With that being said, I might as well try to defend my bias here.

Here is why Benjamin Todd Roethlisberger is amazing...

In order for a quarterback's statistics to be entered in the official record book, a player must have over 1500 attempts. Big Ben surpassed that earlier this season with a victory over the Baltimore Ravens. I think it is a common misconception of how amazing Roethlisberger's STATISTICS are through his first four seasons.

* 1,116-1,779 (63 percent), 14,085 yards, 8.0 average, 97 TDs, 66 INT, 91 rating

Yes, I understand at first glance that nothing really pops out, but lets take a closer look at some of these statistics. How good is the 91 passer rating? Well it looks pretty good when the only quarterbacks that have a higher ratings are Tom Brady (SB winning QB), Kurt Warner (SB winning QB), Peyton Manning (SB winning QB) and Steve Young (HEY CHECK IT OUT, yet another SB winning QB). I'd say being in the top five all time is not bad at all.

Not convinced yet? Well lets take a deep breath and move on to the most important statistic that is never talked about. Drum roll please........PASSING YARDS PER ATTEMPT. Let's take a deeper look into this statistic. The biggest knock on my Ben Roethlisberger is that he can't throw the ball 35, 40 or 50 times a game. Here is my simple rebuttal. He doesn't have to! If you are completing more yards per attempt than any other quarterback then you do not need to throw it so many times. He does more with less. Compare his 8 yards per attempt to some other well-known quarterbacks around the league...

Brett Farve: 7.03 per attempt
Peyton Manning: 7.61 per attempt
Eli Manning: 6.44 per attempt
Philip Rivers: 7.38 per attempt

Big Ben surpasses basically every other quarterback in the league that has played a significant amount of time. Now you probably asking me the question, "Matt that is a good statistic, but where does Ben Roethlisberger, your lover, rank all-time?"

1. Otto Graham: 8.63
2. Sid Luckman: 8.42
3. Norm Van Brocklin: 8.16
4. Kurt Warner: 8.14
5. Ben Roethlisberger: 8.10

A few of those names might be unfamiliar to you. To those people....learn some NFL history. The top three names were all MULTIPLE champions. An achievement that the former Miami of Ohio great will once reach.

I really didn't have a good seg way into this paragraph, but lets talk some playoff football! I'm all about keeping it real and lets be real people, legends are made in the playoffs. "Roethlishaters," as I call them, like to bring up his Super Bowl performance. Allow me to point out, he did not play very well at all against the Seahawks in 2005, but he made a couple plays that needed to be made and was on a victorious team. When he makes the Super Bowl again in his career, he will need to play better. "Roethlis-haters" never like to point how spectacular he played in the three ROAD games leading up to game in Detroit.

AT Cincinnati: 14-19 for 208 yards 74%, 10.9 YPA, 148.7 rating
AT Indianapolis: 14-24 for 197 yards 58% 8.21 YPA 95.3 rating
AT Denver: 21-29 for 275 yards 72% 9.48 YPA 124.9 rating

Allow to retort that Roethlisberger didn't play well in the Superbowl, especially with the two interceptions. With that horrible game, he still had a total of seven touchdown passes to just three interceptions. Compare that to Peyton Manning's postseason run in 2006 in which he threw just three touchdowns and seven interceptions. Big Ben is 5-2 in the playoffs in his career, not bad for a player who is just 26 years old.

Roethlisberger has always had amazing team around him, but any successful quarterback needs that. With that being said, lets not forget that he took over a team that was 6-10 in 2003 and then 1-1 when he officially became the starting quarterback in week three of the 2004 season. What did he do from there? He simply won every single game he quarterbacked during that regular season winning the rookie of the year and holding just about every single rookie quarterback record.

Is he flawless? Maybe. Actually he definitely has flaws. He has been inconsistent in the 2008 season. He throws too many interceptions and takes a lot of sacks. When push comes to shove though, he wins games. Through his first five seasons, NO QB IN HISTORY has more wins then Ben does.

He put up amazing numbers at Fidlay High School, then Miami of Ohio and now the Pittsburgh Steelers. He can run, he can pass and I even heard the 240 pounder can fly. The Pittsburgh Steelers have him locked up for a long, long time and I could not be more happy about it. To quote Terrell Owens (I can't believe I'm doing that).....

"That's my quarterback!!!!!"

.....minus the crying.