A Loser Picking Winners, Week 11

We haven't had a CPW in a while, but luckily Bob Smizik rescues us with this (I don't know if it's part of the Post-Gazette's pay stuff -- I couldn't find it on the free website -- but I did come across the column on the Steelers Nation message board.)

Smizik's an old curmudgeon who makes a living off writing contrarian stuff -- he's kind of Skip Bayless Lite (well, that may be understating it a bit; if Bayless is whiskey, Smizik is probably a diet Sprite), but without all the plastic surgery. Anyway, he presents a litany of reasons why Steelers' fans can plan on being disappointed as the season unfolds. He might be right, but as usual, his logic's a little faulty:

"The 7-2 record is deceiving. The combined record of the seven teams the Steelers have beaten is 22-41. Among their victims are only two teams with winning records: San Diego, which is 5-4, and Cincinnati, which is 7-2. Based on record, the Cincinnati win looks impressive. It's not. The combined records of the teams the Bengals have beaten is 20-43. The Bengals are paper tigers."

Somewhere the disrespected Rodney Harrison is plotting Smizik's demise. Uh, I think the Pats have a winning record too. Not that that really changes the overall point (I guess it's kinda like saying, "You forgot Poland!"), but what's really funny is that the first two sentences of the next paragraph reads thusly:

"The Steelers losses also are alarming. They lost at home to New England, a 5-4 team that was decimated by injuries that day and in no way resembles the club that has won three of the past four Super Bowls."

Smizik goes on to say that the Jacksonville loss really doesn't count because of the absence of Roethlisberger, so I'm not sure how Pittsburgh's two losses can be considered "alarming."

But whatever, this is just Smizik blowing smoke. When he says things like, "The team lacks the dominating defense or the electrifying offense that usually is the stamp of a Super Bowl participant," it just makes me shake my head, though. Hmmm. Let's see. If only there were a place where one could go and find stats about how good a team is compared to other teams in the league on a play-by-play basis. Then maybe we could refute some of Smizik's silliness. (By the way, heading into Week 11, the Pittsburgh offense ranked 8th in the league, and the defense was 4th. Yeah, that's pretty awful.) What a dope.

***
It doesn't happen often, so I should also recognize columns that are actually insightful. Joe Starkey has either been abducted by aliens (or maybe just abducted period) or grown tired of writing really crappy columns, because his latest is pretty good. It's about the Hampburglar, and how he made it out of the projects in Galveston, Texas, to the University of Texas, and eventually the Pittsburgh Steelers. I vote for more stuff like this and less Smizik-inspired crap. But that's just me.

***
Israel raises a good point about Marvel Smith. If he can't go Sunday, that means the Human Tub of Goo, Barrett Brooks will get the start. And if Ben's not a 100% (and he's not), there's no need in putting him back there and letting him get the crap kicked out of him just long enough to ensure that he really gets injured. The solution? Meet Tommy Maddox, who could take a sack during a walk-through. Israel mentions in his comment that Craig Wofley feels like Randle El might be the best option here, but I tend to agree with Countertorque (as Israel does later), that starting El introduces a whole other set of problems that the Steelers have already covered during the Slash era.

Something else to consider: if El did start, and Brooks was the LT, how long would that last? I mean, El might weigh 175 lbs. and if he's taking sacks, and gets injured, then what? Cedrick Wilson as the #2? Uh, I'll pass. So while the idea of El starting at QB is intriguing (and certainly a hell of a lot more exciting than the prospects of Maddox), it's probably not in the best interests of the team. Well, at least until the team goes down 14 points on two first quarter picks-for-six by Mr. Gun.

***
I've had a winning record the last two weeks, and I don't want to jinx myself, so I'll keep it short ... real short. (And the usual rules apply -- always pick the Steelers, and always pick against the Ravens and the Skins [thanks Des]. And I've added one more, at least temporarily: pick the friggin' Cardinals until they cover. Which means I could be stuck with them until sometime in 2008) Anyway, on to the picks ...

AWAY HOME  LINE   PICK
JAX  TEN    4.0   JAX
MIA  CLE   -2.0   CLE
NO   NE    -9.0   NO
OAK  WAS   -6.0   OAK
PHI  NYG   -7.0   NYG
TB   ATL   -6.0   TB
ARI  STL   -9.5   ARI
CAR  CHI    3.0   CAR
DET  DAL   -8.0   DET
PIT  BAL    3.5   PIT
SEA  SF    12.0   SEA
BUF  SD   -10.5   SD
NYJ  DEN  -13.0   DEN
IND  CIN    5.5   CIN
KC   HOU    7.0   KC
MIN  GB    -3.5   GB

Season: 66 - 76 - 2
Last week: 8 - 5 - 1
Earnings to date: - $1760

Week 1 picks Week 10 picks
Week 2 picks
Week 3 picks
Week 4 picks
Week 5 picks
Week 6 picks
Week 7 picks
Week 8 picks
Week 9 picks