AFC North: Will Big Ben Play? Will It Matter?

Football Betting Lines

12/30/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - An eerie silence pervaded Heinz Field as Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was being strapped to a backboard in the second quarter of Pittsburgh's eventual 31-0 thrashing of the Cleveland Browns.

There was concern for Roethlisberger, who it turned out had suffered a minor concussion and, luckily for all involved, not the more serious injury that a call for immobilization of the head and neck generally indicates.

There were also whispers about head coach Mike Tomlin's decision to use the oft-battered Roethlisberger in a game that meant absolutely nothing for the Steelers, who were locked into the No. 2 playoff slot in the AFC.

Generally speaking, the worst-case scenario when a star player participates in a meaningless game such as this one is just such an injury, and many Steelers fans may have wondered if the team's Super Bowl hopes were flashing before their eyes as Roethlisberger was being removed from the sandlot-quality Heinz Field playing surface.

Tomlin said after the Cleveland win that he was hopeful Roethlisberger would play when the team hosts a Divisional Playoff game on Jan. 11, and on Tuesday told reporters that the former Pro Bowler was "doing better."

Roethlisberger's status is bound to be a topic of conversation and media speculation in advance of the Steelers' playoff date with the Dolphins, Chargers, or Colts...though should it?

Sure, the former first-round pick has a Super Bowl win on his resume, has topped 3,000 passing yards in each of the past three seasons and is undeniably talented, but let's not pretend he's the first, second, or third reason that Pittsburgh is a 12-4 division-winner in 2008.

Though a weak offensive line is largely to blame, Roethlisberger hasn't posted a triple-digit passer rating since Week 7, threw a scant eight touchdown passes versus 12 interceptions over his final 10 games, and presides over the NFL's No. 22 offense (311.9 yards per game) and No. 17 passing offense (206.3 yards per game).

Does anyone think Byron Leftwich - who has looked at ease in two games of extended relief this season - would fail to live up to those lofty numbers?

The truth is that the Steelers continue to win in spite of their offense, not because of it, and it is the defense that will have to carry Pittsburgh if the team wishes to raise the Lombardi Trophy in a month's time.

The Black and Gold finished the regular season ranked No. 1 in the league in total defense (237.2 yards per game), scoring defense (13.9 points per game), and passing defense (156.9 yards per game), and finished a close second in NFL rushing defense (80.2 yards per game) behind only the Minnesota Vikings.

Three Steelers defenders were named to the Pro Bowl (Troy Polamalu, James Farrior, James Harrison), one more should have been (LaMarr Woodley), and cases could be made for at least two others (Casey Hampton, Aaron Smith).

Meanwhile, neither Roethlisberger nor a single member of the Steelers offense either received or was worthy of a Pro Bowl citation.

That's not meant as a knock, but rather an illustration of how dominant the Steelers "D" has been this year, most recently in a game in which they allowed all of 20 passing yards, eight first downs, and 126 total yards to the hapless Browns offense.

In other words, Pittsburgh's loyal fan base need not fret as they ring in the New Year, as long as the only injury news they have to hear about involves a guy wearing No. 7, and not No. 43.

BENGALS: In years past, a large selection of Bengals fans might throw up their hands and bemoan how their team's jump from 0-8 irrelevance to 4-11-1 irrelevance had cost the franchise a top-five Draft pick.

But in the NFL circa 2008, and with signing bonuses for top-five picks being what they are, every win that the Bengals posted during their respectable late-season run meant a couple less million they would have to pay to an untested college superstar next summer.

And given the franchise's reputation for provoking player unrest due to a penchant for tossing around nickels like manhole covers, fans need to recognize that a spot outside the 2009 Draft's top five can only be a good thing.

With the No. 6 pick, Cincinnati should have no trouble finding the offensive or defensive lineman so sorely needed to help turn the organization's flagging fortunes around, and shouldn't find it impossible to locate the dollars to pay him, either.

With Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson presumably back and healthy in 2009, and with Cedric Benson coming in on the heels of a breakout half-season in the Bengals backfield, there is reason for optimism that the team can turn its fortunes around quickly next year.

The team's seeming stronger attitude during the second half of 2008 also speaks to the notion of a team on the cusp of good things.

"I think we found at the end of the season that guys who want to play are going to be better than guys who aren't quite sure whether they want to play," said head coach Marvin Lewis, who will be back for a seventh season in 2009. "If you have 11 guys out there wanting to play and wanting to get it done correctly, you have a chance to be more productive. I think that's important and a good lesson."

BROWNS: For a time, the 2008 Cleveland Browns were considered a disappointment because they failed to live up to the immense promise that followed them into the season.

Then, in the final six weeks of the campaign, the 2008 Cleveland Browns morphed from a disappointing team into one of the most punchless, uncompetitive clubs in the organization's long history, perhaps matched only by the team's "expansion" season of 1999.

The Browns, who entered the season with Pro Bowlers or former Pro Bowlers at quarterback, wide receiver, tight end, running back, and left tackle, somehow managed to go their final 24 quarters of the year without scoring an offensive touchdown, an NFL record for futility. Romeo Crennel's squad was outscored by a margin of 129-31 during its season-ending 0-6 stretch, with four different starting quarterbacks presiding over that run. The Browns were shut out in each of their final two games, against the Bengals (14-0) and Steelers (31-0), falling into sole possession of last place in an AFC North that many had them winning entering the year.

In all a dismal, confounding performance, one that cost both Crennel and general manager Phil Savage their jobs soon after the final second had ticked off the Heinz Field clock this past Sunday.

Team owner Randy Lerner called Crennel, who fashioned a 24-40 record in four seasons on the job, a "gentleman through and through" and did not rule out a future position for Crennel in the organization.

Of Savage, Lerner noted, "We talked about change and about strengthening the organization. It became very clear that our management styles were not going to be adequately compatible going forward."

Lerner immediately commenced the general manager and coaching search, receiving permission to interview Patriots' personnel executive Scott Pioli to start what is expected to be an extensive process.

The Browns are 54-107 (.335) since returning to the NFL in 1999, and have made only one playoff appearance (a loss to the Steelers in 2002) over that span.

RAVENS: As it turns out, a sprint to the finish is the only thing that would have put the Baltimore Ravens into the playoff bracket in 2008.

Two weeks ago, after a heartbreaking loss to the Steelers sent John Harbaugh's team to 9-5, team leaders such as Ray Lewis spoke of the need to get to 11-5 and not put the Ravens' playoff fate in anyone else's hands.

The team got the message, as wins over the Cowboys (33-24) and Jaguars (27-7) raised the mark to 11-5, and gave Baltimore the No. 6 and final seed in the AFC playoff bracket thanks to a better conference record than the similarly 11-5 New England Patriots.

The Ravens will travel to meet AFC East Champion Miami for a Wild Card round game this Sunday, and will have a chance to win the franchise's first playoff contest since it defeated the Dolphins back in the 2001 Wild Card round.

All for a team coming off a last-place, 5-11 finish a year ago, one with a rookie quarterback, head coach, and a ton of uncertainty in the eyes of those who failed to predict big things for Baltimore heading into 2008.

"That tells you what everybody who plays or coaches in the league already knows," said Harbaugh on Monday. "It's amazing to me that observers of the league don't realize this. Predictors and prognosticators make such bold statements about who's going to do what. There's no way to make those predictions in this league. Everybody in this league is really good. [Each team has] really good coaches, really good players, and any team from one year to the next can rise up and have a good year. There's a real fine line. It's different in college football. There's a fine line in the NFL because everybody is professional and they're at the top of the game, without question."