That’s almost half of the season.

When a guy gets suspended from the NFL with still a few more months left before the 2010 NFL football season begins, you can’t help but wonder what moves will that guy’s team make to save themselves from limping out of the gates come September.

That is the dilemma the Pittsburgh Steelers are in these coming months as they prepare to start their campaign this coming season without their prized quarterback who already led them to two Super Bowl titles in four years.

That’s right, the NFL finally suspended Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for six games after rape allegations were thrown at the young NFL star. In a letter to Roethlisberger, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said that Roethlisberger must adhere to any counseling or treatment that is recommended by the professional evaluators to help him make better decisions and avoid situations that can cause legal or other problems. A professional behavioral evaluation is mandatory for anyone that has violated the personal-conduct policy.

Also according to the letter, Roethlisberger may not attend any team offseason activity until he has completed the evaluation and the evaluating professionals confirm with the commissioner that Roethlisberger may resume football activities. If so cleared, Roethlisberger will be able to participate in training camp and…

That’s right, the Steelers are probably starting to get sick and tired of all this shit their star quarterback always finds himself into during the offseason.

In case you haven’t heard, Ben Roethlisberger faced allegations that he sexually assaulted a 20 – year – old college student in the town of Milledgeville, Ga thus tarnishing his good and squeaky clean image.

The Pittsburgh Steelers meanwhile, are known for being a blue-collar franchise with a reputation for toughness without any tolerance for nonsense. It’s understandable that they are very upset with Roethlisberger and his recent antics.

The Steelers already tried to clean house and keep their reputation intact by dealing star wideout Santonio Holmes to the New York Jets for a measly 5th round pick after the Super Bowl MVP was suspended by the league due to violations of substance abuse policy.

Now it looks like it’s Roethlisberger’s turn although I don’t know if the Steelers will really trade the guy who already got them two Super Bowl titles.

But if they do, rumors have circulated that the Buffalo Bills are interested, but an even stronger possibility is the St. Louis Rams. The Rams hold the no.1 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft and according to the rumors, the Steelers are keen on drafting Sam Bradford, a guy they consider to be a ‘’sure thing” as a franchise quarterback.

The Rams may offer their no.1 pick as well as their 2011 first round pick, and perhaps even more, in exchange for Roethlisberger.

The Rams are desperate for a credible playmaker on offense…

Really? He is?

Yes, Ben Roethlisberger is once again making the headlines prior to the start of the football season. This time, it doesn’t involve motorcycle accidents, Super Bowl hangovers or any other shit Big Ben usually finds himself into. This time, coming to the 2010 NFL football season, Roethlisberger is trying to rebuild his image after sexually assaulting a 20 – year – old college student.

Wow. First it was Tiger Woods and now Ben Roethlisberger? Jeez… These guys who have these once squeaky clean reputations are really getting hammered these days huh? Who’s next? Jerry Sloan?

Roethlisberger, who luckily won’t be facing criminal charges after the 20 – year – old student gave up on the case since her accusations could not be proven beyond reasonable doubt, apologized to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the NFL, and more importantly, to football fans for the entire fiasco.

Oh yes, Roethlisberger will walk, just like Kobe Bryant did a few years ago after the alleged rape incident in Colorado. Huge stars like them usually get a free get – out – of – jail card.

”Here the overall circumstances do not lead to a viable prosecution. If they did, I would be pursuing it vigorously,” Ocmulgee Circuit District Attorney Fred Bright said. ”We do not prosecute…

Holy mother of god, the Steelers have now sunk to a whole different level.

In what is shaping up to be one of the most disappointing runs in the 2009 NFL football season, the Pittsburgh Steelers lost their fifth straight game to drop to 6-7 and possibly out of the playoff race.

Yes, the Pittsburgh Steelers, a year removed from winning Super Bowl XLIII, have now lost FIVE straight games. However, what’s even more unsettling is the fact that the champions lost to a team that shouldn’t have any business beating them in the first place and in case you missed the headline, yes, the Steelers lost to the freaking Cleveland Browns.

You read it, the Cleveland Browns, a team ten games below .500, kicked the defending champions’ butts Thursday night to put an end to the Steelers’ hopes of defending their title in the playoffs. The last time something like this happened to the champions was almost four years ago when the Super Bowl XL champions had a sub par campaign the following season.

Guess what, that team was the Pittsburgh Steelers too.

Of course, all is not lost for Ben Roethlisberger and the rest of the Steelers, yet. They are 6-7 and still have a shot at a wild card playoff spot. However, they need other wild card hopefuls to start losing games the way they’ve been losing too.

Five weeks ago, the Steelers were 6-2 and looking at a return to the Super Bowl. Unexpected losses to the Kansas City Chiefs (that was bad…), the Oakland Raiders (that was worse…) and the Cleveland Browns (now that’s just pushing it…) pushed this team over the edge and on the brink of not even making the playoffs.

It’s humiliating and the Steelers…

Can the defending champions get the chance to defend their title?

That is the question some football fans are wondering coming to Week 14 of the 2009 NFL football season. You see, the defending champions Pittsburgh Steelers are in danger of missing out on the opportunity to defend the championship they won last February. Hell, with the rate the Steelers are going, they could even MISS THE PLAYOFFS. Ouch.

At 6-6, the Pittsburgh Steelers are in danger of not even making the postseason. They have dropped four straight and are still trailing the Broncos and the Jaguars for that wild card playoff spot.

Luckily, they have the Cleveland Browns, a team that has lost seven straight to put themselves in a three-way tie with the Buccaneers and the Rams for the worst record in the league at 1-11. The Browns are going nowhere and the Steelers shouldn’t have a problem taking care of business this Thursday night to kick off Week 14.

Besides, despite losing last Sunday, Ben Roethlisberger had a quarterback rating of over 100.0 for the second straight game. And since he had a whopping 417 yards and two touchdowns the last time he played the Browns, I don’t expect him to have a bad game against this team.

Steelers by 14 points on Thursday Night Football.

Next, we have a classic NFC East rivalry on Sunday Night Football where…

We have a good one for you this week.

Everybody knows that the intensity of the 2009 NFL football season picks up after Thanksgiving and the games we have for you this weekend proves why.

First, we have MVP candidate Brett Favre and the rest of the Minnesota Vikings playing hosts to the Chicago Bears. The Vikings are on a three-game winning streak and since the Bears virtually don’t have anything going for them at this point of the season, this game gives the Vikes the perfect opportunity to extend that streak to four straight wins.

Since the Minnesota Vikings welcomed Brett Favre in mid-August, the team has gone to great lengths. The Vikings are averaging more than 30 points per game, they have the consensus top running back in the league in Adrian Peterson and the future Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre, who is playing better at 40 than he ever has.

On the defensive end, the Vikings are no.3 against the run, allowing just 85.5 yards per game with defensive end Jared Allen ranking second in the NFL with 10.5 sacks.

As for the Chicago Bears, they are on a streak of their own, a losing one. While the Vikings have won three in a row, the Bears have lost three in a row. Jay Cutler and the rest of the Bears have also lost five of their last six games, definitely not something you want to be in the middle of at this point of the season.

In the past 30 days, the Chicago Bears have been lit up by…

Are the Bengals for real?

That’s the question the Bengals will try to answer as Week 10 of the 2009 NFL football season continues. They have the defending champions Pittsburgh Steelers this week. Can the Bengals surprise this team like they did the Ravens last week?

This matchup between the defending Super Bowl champions Pittsburgh Steelers and the red hot Cincinnati Bengals should be an awesome AFC North face-off. The Steelers are on a five – game winning streak, looking to ride on their momentum heading to their matchup with Cincinnati.

They just brought down one Cinderella team in the NFL last Monday night, beating the Denver Broncos 28-10. Hines Ward caught two touchdown passes from Ben Roethisberger in Denver as the Steelers dominated the Broncos 28-10, despite playing without three of their starters on defense.

The Steelers hope they can bring another Cinderella team down this week when they go up against the Cincinnati Bengals. And as far as the Steelers’ three starters on defense who missed last Monday night’s game are concerned; safety Ryan Clark, linebacker Lawrence Timmons and defensive end Travis Kirschke could all start against Cincinnati this Sunday.

That’s a good thing too since the Super Bowl champions are…

Will the Broncos offense succumb to another talented defensive team for the second straight week?

Yep, Week 9 of the 2009 NFL football season continues on Monday night as the Denver Broncos go up against yet another defensive minded powerhouse when they take on the Steel Curtain and the Pittsburgh Steelers at Invesco Field at Mile High Stadium.

The Denver Broncos suffered their first loss of the season last Sunday, losing to the Baltimore Ravens 30-7. And in case you didn’t notice it, yes, that high powered offense that helped Denver to a scintillating 6-0 start only put up seven points against that Ravens D.

Of course, those guys would love to return to the win column, the problem is, they have the Pittsburgh Steelers next, a team that takes pride on playing defense as good as the Ravens have the last few years. Can the Broncos get it going against this D?

The fact that the Pittsburgh Steelers have been undefeated since their 1-2 start to the season is reason enough for the Broncos to be a little worried. Pittsburgh now has a legitimate shot to win a third straight AFC North title and the Broncos expect Ben Roethlisberger and the rest of the Steelers to go at ‘em at full throttle.

Roethlisberger, third in the NFL with 2,062 passing yards…

No.4 should be one of the prime candidates to win league MVP this season.

But this Sunday, getting another win and staying undefeated is the only thing Brett Favre and the Vikings are concerned about as Week 8 of the 2009 NFL football season continues. Can the impressive 6-0 Vikings stay on top of the NFC?

The Minnesota Vikings look to remain undefeated as they visit the defending champions Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field. This is clearly a huge test for Brett Favre as he takes on Troy Polamalu and that impressive Steelers secondary.

The immortal Brett Favre, who is who is 6-0 for the first time in his career after last week’s 33-31 win over Baltimore, aims to join Dieter Brock (1985 Rams) as the only two quarterbacks since the merger to win their first seven starts to start a season with a new team.

Last week, Favre threw a 58-yard pass to wide receiver Sidney Rice, who finished with a career-high 176 yards, late in the fourth quarter to set up Ryan Longwell’s field goal for the 33-31 lead. The Ravens almost stole this one with a late field goal but thanks to Favre’s magic, Ravens kicker…

And we have a number of ‘em.

We have a few notable events that took place in Week 1 that could have a bearing on Week 2 NFL betting action. Yes, we already have some costly injuries after a week of the 2009 NFL football season and these just might change the way you bet on certain games.

Listed as a Pick’em prior to their season opener against the Carolina Panthers, the Philadelphia Eagles had no trouble enabling their bettors to cash in, hammering the hometown Panthers 38-10.

The impressive victory however came at a cost as Eagles starting QB Donovan McNabb suffered a fractured a lower left rib. As the team begins practicing for its home opener against the New Orleans Saints this weekend, the game is currently off the board, it seems as if they are preparing for the possibility that McNabb could be gone for at least two weeks.

Although head coach Andy Reid is quoted in the USAToday as saying McNabb is ”going to do everything he possibly can to play this week” the team is making moves that say otherwise.

Firstly, the Eagles activated suspended QB Michael Vick from the exempt list, setting the stage for the former Falcon pivot to practice with the team. Vick won’t be able to see action until Game 3.

Philadelphia also acquired former backup QB Jeff Garcia who went 6-2 as a starter when McNabb was injured in 2006.

Despite the McNabb injury, the Eagles’ odds to win the NFC East are actually improved, moving from +240 in the preseason to its current +180, as bettors liked what they’ve seen, even if McNabb is on the shelf for a couple of weeks.

Another key injury heading to Week 2 is the loss of…