Week 1: STILLERS VS. TITANS

FINALLY! The NFL is back after a 7-month hiatus. Tomorrow night kicks off the NFL season, and per tradition, will feature the Super Bowl champs, which of course is the Pittsburgh Steelers. They will square off against the 2008 AFC South champs, the Tennessee Titans. The last time these two teams met was the end of the 2008 season, where the Titans took it to the Steelers and afterward, Titans LB Keith Bullock stepped on the Terrible Towel. An AFC Championship matchup seemed inevitable with them and that revenge would be had for that awful deed. However, the Ravens eliminated them in a divisional game and the Steelers never got their shot. Now, in front of the entire nation on a Thursday night, it is finally time. The Steelers have returned most of their team and will be looking to repeat to make it 3 SB's in 5 seasons. They do have some pitfalls though however, as they have the inevitable bulls-eye target on their backs and have a few weaknesses schematically. The neutralizer though will be Mike Tomlin, who was committed to the 2009 season only a week after winning the Super Bowl. He keeps the team focused and hungry and will have his squad ready for the opener without a doubt. The Titans are good, but the Steelers will be better.
Steelers-24 Titans-13

Here is a preview of the 2009 Pittsburgh Steelers team:

-Ben Roethlisberger: After proving SB 40 was no fluke, Big Ben is back with avengence. He is clearly a top 5 NFL QB and will be ready to showcase his physical and mental prowess tomorrow night. Good news: his alleged "rape victim" has dropped her civil suit. Time to focus on sticking it in the end zone now, in football terms.
-RBs: Willie Parker will anchor the backfield, but nagging injuries may hamper his progress. BUT, Rashard Mendenhall has returned after his shoulder injury which kept him out of the entire 2008 season. Those 2 superstar talents, along with diesel engine Mewelde Moore, should prove troublesome to opposing defenses who have weak D-lines.
-WRs: Losing playmaker Nate Washington hurts, but hey! we have Limas Sweed. Okay that was a joke, but Sweed has indeed looked better in preseason, although I am not convinced of his talents. Santonio Holmes will be their deep threat and reliable Hines Ward, their go-to man. Third rounder Mike Wallace looks like a real potential as well, so no worries with this crew.
-OL: This is one of their weak points for sure. After the loss of Alan Faneca and Marvel Smith, things have been shaky for this group. Max Starks and Trai Essex will man the tackle positions, neither of whom are all-star talents by any means, as they have shown previously. Justin Hartwig will be back at center, consistently good but he's no Jeff Hartings. Then again, who is? Chris Kemeoatu and Darnell Stapleton return as guards, but with Stapleton's play in question due to an injury, Kemeoatu is the lone veteran on the line. If teams want to beat Pittsburgh, beat the line. Protecting Ben may be an issue again this year.
FB/TE: Rookie Frank Summers out of UNLV may see some time as a lead blocker for Parker and Mendenhall, but Mewelde Moore may seem most of the 3rd down back/FB action. Miller and Spaeth both return as big TE threats, another passing option that, in my opinion, gets underused tremendously on this team. Every pass play to Spaeth and Miller connects, everytime. But hey, what do I know?
DL: What the Burgh is infamous for: run-stoppin. Casey Hampton requires two men, and Keisel and Smith are talented enough and quick enough to pressure the opposing QB on every down, every possession. Word has it to that Ziggy Hood is a beast and may see a good amount of playing time, spelling Smith and Keisel, and possibly even Hampton? Wow.
LB: My favorite part of the Pittsburgh Steeler tradition. Gone are the days of Foote, Farrior, Haggans, and Porter. But in its place remains Farrior, the team leader, and my favorite Steelers player by far. His consistency, hard work, dedication, and talent will complement the likes of James Harrison, Lawrence Timmons and Lamar Woodley to create possibly the greatest 3-4 linebacking core ever assembled. Sack city this season for sure.
DB's: Every year I say we need to draft a DB, particularly a corner, in the first round but it never happens. The Steelers draft who is best on the board, not by position. This year's corners are Ike Taylor(who I hate and my dad loves, agree to disagree I guess) and William Gay! Finally, they listened to me for once. Deshea Townsend will see spotty action as he is a grissled veteran of 34 and can still play smart, but unfortunately not fast. Polamalu and Clark will man the safety positions, with Tyrone Carter adding to the depth there.
K: Hopefully Jeff Reed doesnt dye his hair or get a mohawk or something else ridiculous. If he does, Pompeani better do it again.
P: Daniel Sepulveda is back! After tearing his ACL punting is training camp last season(who knows how that happens), he is ready to help out the team, who had a terrible punting average last season. Sepulveda is the only two time winner of the Ray Guy Award in NCAA history, the award for best punter.