Keith Srakocic, Associated Press Marvel Smith, right, might prove his value as much in his absence as he does when he's on the field. Click photo for larger image. More Coverage: Ed Bouchette's Short Snaps: 12/11/05

The Steelers will choose their MVP in a few weeks. Ben Roethlisberger? Troy Polamalu? Hines Ward? Aaron Smith?

What about Marvel Smith? A good left tackle is hard to find and there's no better proof than when Smith missed two of the past three games because of an injury and, in the other, he was forced to leave in the second quarter. It's no surprise the Steelers lost all three games.

Last season, Smith did not miss a game and the Steelers went 15-1. The year before, he missed 10 games and the Steelers went 6-10.

Left tackles are so important because they protect the edge of the quarterback's blind side against the ravaging, athletic, meat eaters who rush the passer from that spot on defense.

The Dallas Cowboys and Kansas City Chiefs have experienced similar problems without their starting left tackles. The Cowboys were 4-2 in their first six games and averaged 373.2 yards per game. Then left tackle Flozell Adams went out for the season with a torn ACL in a knee and the Cowboys went 3-3 and averaged 272.8 yards per game.

The Chiefs have Willie Roaf back and they see that as a very good thing because they are 5-1 with him at left tackle and 3-3 without him.

League favors Colts?

Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio, his team the latest to try to bump off Indianapolis in Jacksonville today, continues to hammer away at the Colts, their noise-making machines and the perception that the league favors them.

Del Rio acknowledged publicly last week what he had complained about privately for his three seasons in Jacksonville, that the Colts artificially pump up the crowd noise through their PA system.

What took him so long to go public?

"Why waste my time?" Del Rio said. "You would hope people would do the right thing ethically, but it's a waste of my time to worry about it. When we get ready to go up there, [we know] it's going to be loud and it's not always the fans making the noise. But let's deal with it."

Does the league favor Peyton Manning and the Colts? They scheduled them for no cold-weather games this season and after the Patriots banged around their receivers a few years ago, suddenly there was a new emphasis pushed through for the 5-yard bump rule.

"I guess I could engage into that discussion but I don't see where that helps our football team prepare for this game," Del Rio said. "I think there is plenty of material out there for other people to look at, but I've got enough to do just to prepare this football team to play well on Sunday."

Loss to help Colts?

Colts coach Tony Dungy, one of the most ethical coaches in the league, has heard all the talk about his team's chances to go undefeated. This week, he was presented with a new theory: That the Colts' chances to win a Super Bowl would be helped with a loss today or next week.

That way, there will be no pressure on Dungy to keep playing his veterans the whole way to pursue the unbeaten season even if they have the top playoff seed in the AFC wrapped up by then.

"No, I don't think it would [be a good idea to lose one] and I don't think you ever want to lose games," Dungy said. "And even last year when we rested our guys, we didn't go in with the idea of, 'OK, we're going to lose this game' ... We want to win them all."

Vermeil having fun

Dick Vermeil might return to coach when he's 70 next season. (No, he's not rumored to be next in line for the Penn State job.)

"I feel younger right now than I did at the start of the season," Vermeil said. "I'm having fun. I'm having a lot of fun."

His Chiefs are winning and that might have something to do with it.

Vermeil is 42-34 in his fifth season with Kansas City, but the Chiefs made the playoffs just once during that time, in 2003.

"I have not had any conversations with him about it," owner Lamar Hunt said. "I really don't plan to because the season's got enough worries anyway. We have four games to go, then, hopefully, the playoffs."

Good doctor

If the Bears continue their success, they will have, in part, someone from the Steelers to thank for it.

Dr. Joseph Maroon, the Steelers' neurological surgeon, helped two Chicago players -- guard Ruben Brown, who played at Pitt, and cornerback Jerry Azumah -- get back on the field and, perhaps, saved their careers.

He performed cervical spine surgery on both last year. The injury is called neuropraxia, a temporary paralysis, tingling, numbness or weakness in the extremities. Only seven in 10,000 football players get it and it usually means the end of their careers.

Azumah, a 2003 Pro Bowl kick returner, is a unique case in another way. The Bears drafted him in the fifth round and converted him into a cornerback. He plays on the nickel and dime defenses and special teams.

He left New Hampshire after setting the Division I-AA rushing record with 6,193. His fullback there was Dan Kreider.

Thus, Kreider has blocked for the career rushing leader in Division I-AA and the No. 5 rusher on the NFL's all-time list, Jerome Bettis.

"It's a privilege to have the opportunity to play with both those guys," Kreider said.

The line of fire

It's been a bad week for team presidents.

The Buffalo News reported that Tom Donahoe may be out after the season as Bills president and general manager after five years and no playoffs. The paper reported that Tom Modrak, the team's assistant general manager, could replace him and that coach Mike Mularkey's job is safe.

And, in Detroit, where there's a Free Press but apparently no free speech inside Ford Field, security agents chased down and tackled a fan who ran through the stands wearing a paper bag that had "Fire Millen" written on it.

Since Matt Millen became president in 2001, the Lions have a record of 20-56 and Millen has fired his third coach, Steve Maruicci.

Some Detroit sports talk shows are trying to organize a fan boycott for the Lions' Dec. 18 game against Cincinnati. Fans at Joe Louis Arena for a Red Wings hockey game Tuesday night held up "Fire Millen" signs and chanted the same. They were not tackled by security.

Unhappy in K.C.

Unlike Millen, another former Penn State player is having a grander time of it, although he does not seem to be enjoying it.

Larry Johnson has put together five consecutive 100-yard rushing games since he replaced injured Priest Holmes Nov. 6 in Kansas City. He's the NFL's leading rusher over the period with 709 yards, an average of 141.8 per game. The Chiefs are 4-1 in those games.

Johnson has 1,108 yards, third in the AFC, with a 5.0-yard per carry average and 11 touchdowns.

But he continues to sound as if he's miserable. He's stopped doing postgame interviews after saying he was uncomfortable living among Kansas City citizens. He did tell the Chiefs' radio network that, "Everybody, including the media, expects me to fold."

Problems in Big D

At least the Steelers did not grossly overpay for their 7-5 record. Jerry Jones spent more than $32 million in signing bonuses alone for the Cowboys' free agent upgrades this year.

"I'm not ecstatic," Jones said. "But I am not disappointed."

Dallas is one game behind the New York Giants in the NFC East.