Mid-Season Report

Team MVP: QB Ben Roethlisberger. The team was 1-1 when the rookie was put into the starting lineup. Now we are 7-1. What else is there to say? Duce Staley is a VERY close runner-up.

Biggest Surprise: QB Ben Roethlisberger. Remember, he wasn't even supposed to play this year!

Runner-up: The offensive line. They were broken down and beaten up at this point last year. Now they are leading an old-fashioned Steelers rushing attack that is one of the best in the NFL.

Biggest Disappointment: LB Kendrell Bell. He has been MIA for the entire season. Unless things change dramatically in the second half, there is no way the Steelers should even consider re-signing him after the season.

Best Personnel Move: The Steelers not only dumped worthless OT Todd Fordham, but they even got an undisclosed draft pick in return. Fordham was quite possibly the worst player in the history of the team - we should have had to give up a first round draft pick just for someone to take him.

The Jamain Stephens Award: This annual award for stupidity goes to 10 other NFL teams who passed on Ben Roethlisberger in last April's draft. Hey Cleveland, how many games has a jerkoff tight end ever won for you? Hey Oakland, you're much better off with Kerry Collins (Penn State sucks) at QB, right? Hey Washington, what is your offense ranked right now?

Best Game: It's a tough call, but I have to go with the week 8 game against New England. The Patriots came into Heinz Field with an NFL record 21 game winning streak, but the Steelers lit them up for 21 first quarter points on their way to a blowout (and nearly flawless) victory.

Worst Game: The week 2 game at Baltimore. Why? Because it's the ONLY game we lost so far!

Best Play: In week 6, the Steelers were one play away from losing, but a James Farrior blitz caused Vinny Testaverde to fumble the game away, giving the Steelers an improbable victory.

Runner-up: In week 4, Troy Polamalu sealed a victory by intercepting a pass from his former college roommate Carson Palmer, and then making a mad dash towards the endzone which saw him break at least five tackles.

Worst Play: In week 9, Plaxico Burress burned the Eagles defense and was on his way to the endzone when he inexplicably dropped the football. The ball rolled out of bounds and the play didn't affect the outcome of the game, but still - hold onto the football, Plex!

Brilliant Quote of the Year: In week 3, CBS announcer (and former Steelers draft pick) Brent Jones commented on how nice it must have been for the people of Miami to get out and see a game after the latest hurricane. Jones apparently didn't notice that half the stadium was empty, nor did he consider that maybe watching a pitiful 0-3 team flail around helplessly in the mud doesn't exactly make up for losing your house to multiple hurricanes.

Best Image of the Year: Watching Texas Stadium erupt when the Steelers took the lead in the final seconds of week 6. "I was shocked at how many [Steelers fans] there were," said Cowboys LB Dexter Coakley.

Sad Story of the Year: Former offensive lineman Justin Strzelczyk, who spent 10 seasons as a fan-favorite in Pittsburgh, was killed in a car crash. The really sad part is that this was no accident. Apparently Jugs was driving recklessly, throwing bottles at the cops who were chasing him. When a toxicology report later revealed that he didn't have any alcohol or drugs in his system at the time, the only thing left to say was, "Why?"

Classless Act of the Year: Visibly injured Ravens TE Todd Heap limped to the line of scrimmage so that Baltimore could spike the ball during a two-minute drill at end of the first half in week 2. LB Joey Porter took the opportunity to knock Heap, who could barely stand, to the ground. If Porter played for ANY other team besides Pittsburgh, everyone in this town would hate his guts.

Unsung Hero of the Year: Head coach Bill Cowher. When the Steelers gave him a contract extension, local media as well as national media (including Sports Illustrated) called the Steelers "blindly loyal" for giving Cowher an extension after a 6-10 season. But Cowher proved them all wrong and is poised for his 10th winning season in 13 years as Steelers coach.

Runner-up: Defensive coordinator Dick Lebeau and offensive coordinator Ken Wishenhunt. I never thought new assistant coaches would be able to make that much of a difference, but they have.

Dumbest Move by an Opponent: The Dallas Cowboys decided that instead of putting the game in the hands of their defense, they would let it rest on the arm of Vinny Testaverde - the same Vinny Testaverde who has had a career's worth of untimely disasters occur while playing against the Steelers.

Best Stat: In week 1, RB Jerome Bettis had 5 carries for 1 yard, but had 3 rushing touchdowns. ESPN's Chris Berman called it "the stat of the century".

Hit of the Year: In week 3, safety Chris Hope popped Miami RB Lamar Gordon so hard that Gordon had to have season-ending surgery on his left shoulder.

Shocker of the Year: A rookie QB leads the Steelers to a 7-1 start, including wins against the two NFL teams whom no one else could beat.

Runner-up: After Tommy Maddox went down with an injury in week 2, Bill Cowher tried to convince Neil O'Donnell to come back to Pittsburgh. O'Donnell declined.

Sarcastic Shocker of the Year: In week 5, drunken Steelers fans at the game screamed at Bill Cowher for using the running game to eat time off the clock and protect a large Steelers lead.