Jerry Micco: Hi everyone! As I occasionally will do, I like to set the record straight about an answer I gave last week. I had a question about Big East football and said the Cincinnati was the only ranked team. I was wrong. South Florida was ranked #23 in the AP poll that week. They are #21 this week. Now on to the questions.

James_Taipei: What is your take on Aaron Smith being out for the year? Can the Steelers do well in the playoffs without him?

Jerry Micco: I think this hurts the Steelers unless they can get guys like Eason and Kirschke to step up in a big way. Not to mention rookie Ziggy Hood, who may not be ready to be a full-time starter. Smith fills a big role on the 3-4. He eats up a lot of blockers and is a pretty good pass rusher for a 3-4 end. I don't think it's as bad as Polamalu or one of the big LBs going down, but it's not great, either. The defense should be fine, but it's better when Smith is playing.

James_Taipei: I have to say that I am very much in disagreement with Ed's take on Isaac Redman. While Redman may not be able to contribute to the Steelers this year even if given a chance, I don't really buy into the belief that just because everyone in the NFL passed on him that he might not make a difference. James Harrison was passed by everyone in football and bounced around the league for three years and has turned out to be a monster. Jerry, what are your thoughts on this subject?

Jerry Micco: Some guys get a shot and prove they can do it. Sometimes, that takes some time. I won't speak for Ed, but I don't see Redman on the same level as any of the backs the Steelers currently have. Nothing wrong with having him on a rookie roster or having him compete for a spot in camp next year, but right now, I don't think he's ready to play in the NFL. Doesn't mean he won't be ready by this time next year.

Homey: Looking around at 3 of the 4 AFC division leaders, I can't say I'm too worried about the Broncos, Jets, and Bengals. Your thoughts?

Jerry Micco: The Bengals are better than folks think. I said that in one of my late August chats. I thought the Bengals would be a better team, and a win at Baltimore proves they they are legitimate. The Broncos and Jets, I agree, I don't see them doing it over the long haul. At some point, Sanchez is going to be figured out by other teams and the Broncos have too many holes. Plus, outside of the New England game, their schedule has been light. And that game was at home. I'd not take Denver lightly, but I'm not as worried about them as I would be someone like Baltimore and certainly Indy.

theWellHungarian: Am I alone in thinking that the NFL players sound foolish for saying that they'd never play for a team owned by Rush Limbaugh? I didn't hear any of the Steeler Republicans refuse to play for Rooneys because he was supporting Obama. These are also the same players that play with Michael Vick, Leonard Little, Greg Lloyd, Jeff Reed, Mark Chmura, etc.

Jerry Micco: How did Jeff Reed get into that mix? Anyhow, players will play for any owner who pays them well. However, Limbaugh is a lightning rod and some people have called him divisive. I don't listen to his show and never have, but I wonder how much of this is from his Donovan McNabb comments a few years back? I don't for a minute think he's racist, but ABC sure got him out the booth in a hurry.

praveen: Hi Jerry. Pens are understandably not on their A-game. Yet they are in first place with very solid goaltending from Fleury. After that grueling postseason, they deserve to face a few bad goalie performances like what we saw against Philly, Toronto, and Ottawa.

Jerry Micco: The schedule has not been a tough one out of the gate, but it gets tougher tonight against Carolina. I think if they are not on their A game, then they are on their B-plus or A-minus game. I like the way they are playing and forcing the play most of the game. I think look pretty formidable. Am I missing something?

praveen: In breaking news, Aaron Smith's agent just classified the Pirates chances of hitting .500 next season as "OK". (PGPlusers might get that joke).

Jerry Micco: Then I'll put it out there for the Plus members (and non-members). Remember guys, it's only $3.99 a month. Shameless plug.

praveen: While Smith is great, I think Ike Taylor may be their most irreplaceable player on defense after Troy. If he goes down, you got Townsend subbing for him. Just imagine the matchup problems against big WRs that Ike has been great on.

Jerry Micco: I think Taylor is often underrated in the Steelers scheme. He's very close to a complete shut-down corner, not in the Champ Bailey class, but close. And he rarely gets beaten deep, which in the Steelers defensive scheme, is paramount.

praveen: With Troy coming back, I sure hope this means the banishment of Ratliff from those extra DB packages. He hasn't made a single play yet.

Jerry Micco: Keiwan Ratliff has has his issues. Tomlin seems to trust him, but he always seems to be out there when TDs are scored, which is certainly a cause for concern.

praveen: Regarding the article on Kunitz, I do think he needs to score goals if he is going to justify that 3.5M salary he makes. As good as his intangibles are, they don't justify 3.5M. That is a little less than what Guerin and Fed make combined.

Jerry Micco: He brings a lot to the team, but I agree, he's got to get some goals to be worth what he makes. I think he'll be a 15-goal guy, but you wonder about him playing on a top line and getting 15 goals. I know they like the total package, but still. I think I agree with you.

praveen: Will someone please beat Indy? I sure do not want them getting home field advantage.

Jerry Micco: That's not going to be easy. They have a pretty nice stretch before a game at Baltimore, coming up later this year. And they play New England at home a week before that game, so maybe the loss comes there. Otherwise, look out. The Colts look terrific.

praveen: I think the last two weeks just showed us that Kendall Simmons and not Mendenhall may actually be the worst Colbert era pick in the first round. (though that is not a bad worst 1st pick to make considering he was OK). Simmons, an active scratch this sesaon, while Rashard has been great in the last two games.

Jerry Micco: I'm not sure how much the injuries and the diabetic condition Simmons suffers from add to that. I thought he as a solid pick before the injury. Certainly not the kind of guard Alan Faneca was (and still is), but solid. He slipped because of injuries and sometimes if you're hurt enough, you never really get better.

ajt123: How many points do you think the Pens will finish with this year?

Jerry Micco: I'm going to say 100-105. Maybe a bit more. Certainly more than 100.

James_Taipei: Do you see the Penguins competing for the Presidents Trophy this season?

Jerry Micco: I do. I think they can have the best regular-season record because they are so loaded. If they get great play from Fleury, they are going to be much tougher than they were last year in the regular season. There will be some hiccups on the way, but I look for them to be in the top 3 in regular-season points.

renegade: Paul Zeise reported that "about half" the fans remained at the end of the Pitt game saturday. I was there, that is simply not true Jerry. Some people left, not half. I turn to the PG for news, not sensationalism. Can we leave the sensationalism to the tabloids? Pitt fans deserve to be taken to task for some things, but saying half left was just not true!

Jerry Micco: Well, I wasn't at the game and I've heard reports from half the fans leaving to none at all. The announcers mentioned it many times on TV, so it was noticeable. And I noticed more yellow seats open in the lower bowl on TV. The larger question is why would anyone leave a college football game where one team was up by 15 with about 4 minutes left in the third quarter? Pitt's offense can do a lot of things and UConn isn't exactly Florida. It was a very good win by the Panthers, an exciting win. I thought it was good football. So maybe you can tell me why a number of folks left? And I will say, it was noticeable.

Homey: I missed last week's chat. But while we're setting the record straight from last week's chat, you did write that PSU lost probably their best 3 WRs in program history from last year. You stand by that opinion? I'm a Pitt alum and no PSU fan, but I have to think guys like Engram and Jurevicius have more skins on the wall than last year's crop (those are just 2 who came to mind).

Jerry Micco: I'm talking about as a group of three, these guys are the best group of 3 Penn State has ever had at one time. No knock on Engram, Kenny Jackson, OJ McDuffie, et al, but as a group, they are 3 pretty tough guys to replace. Deon Butler is first in career receptions, Derrick Williams third and Jordan Norwood fourth. Engram is second. Engram also leads in total yards and TDs. But all three are in the top 10 for career receiving yards. So yes, I stand by what I said last week.

James_Taipei: When it is all said and done, do you think that the AFC championship will come to a Pittsburgh versus Indy playoff matchup? Who do you see as being a suprise team that might win the AFC this year?

Jerry Micco: I think they Indy and the Steelers have the best chance of being there at the end. I'd not count out Baltimore or New England, however. And Cincinnati is going to give people fits all season. Remember, the Bengals own wins over the Steelers and Ravens already this season.

KS_Steeler: Hi Jerry - I know this is very premature, but with the Steelers appearing on the verge of some roster turnover, (Hampton, Parker, Reed) along with some very average drafts these past few years, it look like the Steelers could be players in the offseason FA market, any thoughts?

Jerry Micco: Every year, the Steelers mine free agency to try to find the right fits. But its rare they'll sign a James Farrior type free agent. Still, I agree they may be short in a couple of areas. I'm not concerned about signing a kicker, you can usually find one out there. Maybe not as good as Reed, but you never know on kickers.

KS_Steeler: Regarding Ike Taylor's value, just think, if the Jets don't draft Revis, the speculation was the Steelers were going to, that would be one heck of a pair of Corners.

Jerry Micco: Oh, I've been saying that for years, and said it in a draft-day blog I was doing that day. When the Jets picked him, the Steelers had to wince. And it was just before the Steelers pick, which wound up being Lawrence Timmons. Not a bad pick, but Darrelle Revis is a pretty special player, and you could see that when he was at Pitt.

James_Taipei: Do you think that Kunitz may eventually be demoted t the second or third line?

Jerry Micco: I think if he can't get off the scoring schneid, and if Crosby is OK with it, he may be. But this early in the season, I don't look for that to happen.

ajt123: Do you know off the top of your head if the Pens have anything planned for the last games to be played in the Igloo?

Jerry Micco: No, sorry.

DJ_Doug: Hello Sir. Others readers may not like this so much, but I was wondering why the PG doesn't just charge a simple monthly fee to access all the online content? I mean why not pay the 50 cents a day just as you would the paper copy? It's the least I could do to help keep the PG up and running.

Jerry Micco: I'll pass that suggestion on to the powers that be. We have reasons for not charging for our free Web site, thus we created PG+ as a new entity. But we're still looking at other options.

ajt123: Whos your favorite for the world series?

Jerry Micco: I like the Phillies and Yankees to get there and then for the Phillies to repeat. Though I think the Angels and Dodgers will hardly be pushovers. What I'd love is a Yankees-Dodgers series for a lot of reasons. Great storylines there.

Chunkles: Jerry, its seems like Rashard Handhimtheball is finally getting it, and other than one good return, Logan has lost it. Also, the Steelers should crush the Browns. After that, they need to turn on the lights on defense. Culpepper almost beat them! Farve, Palmer, and Flacco will eat them alive if they do not pick it up! I think they are too old up front.

Jerry Micco: One at a time: yes, Mendenhall is going to keep getting the ball. Logan is still valuable. His big return after the pick-6 set up that next score. The Steelers haven't had a guy like that in some time. Yes, the schedule gets much tougher after the Browns. The bye after Minnesota will help. I think they have to watch their age, yes, but there as some young guys there, too. If not in age, then playing time. Harrison and Keisel are young guys, relatively speaking. Hood was drafted to play on the DL. Woodley is a young guy, so is Timmons.

renegade: If 44K people were at the Pitt game, do you seriously think 22K left before it was over?

Jerry Micco: I wasn't there, so I have no idea.

DJ_Doug: Any thoughts on how Char Valley (my alma mater) fairs against TJ tomorrow night without Wayne Capers?

Jerry Micco: TJ is always tough. Char Valley is a very good team, but TJ is awfully tough.

stinkybritches: Hey Jerry, what is the big deal with giving Ziggy the reps? How is it any different than what the Lions are doing with Stafford? I would think the steelers have more surrounding talent around Hood than the Lions do.

Jerry Micco: I think they want to make sure he knows what he's doing out there before they put him out there. The Lions have to play Stafford. What do they have to lose in playing him? The Steelers don't have to play Hood a lot because as you say, they have talent on defense. I think it's 2 different situations.

James_Taipei: Jerry with points being awarded for overtime loses 110 points is probably needed to compete for the Presidents Trophy! Three teams had over 110 points last year(Boston, Detroit, and San Jose).

Jerry Micco: Then I think the Pens could probably still contend. And I don't think them getting 110-115 is out of the question, but you never know with injuries, etc. I think my 105 is a safe bet, but I could be low, no question.

DJ_Doug: Pitt seems like they have an offense like they never had in a very long time - weapons everywhere at RB and TE and WR. Could be an exciting run if the defense can be average and the offense doesn't beat itslef. Also, love the new home uniforms. They closest they have come to getting back to the older style from the 70's.

Jerry Micco: I think Pitt is a very good football team. Tough test this week at Rutgers, but one they can win. Their closing run vs. Notre Dame, at WVU and Cincy here sets up as three terrific games. I think this is the best Pitt team overall I've seen since I've been here in 2004. That includes the Fiesta Bowl team. Maybe not defensively, but offensively, wow, they have a lot of weapons as you say.

ajt123: Do you think the Pirates will be sold anytime soon?

Jerry Micco: Nope. They make too much money for the Nuttings for them to sell the team.

renegade: I just think if Zeise didn't have a definitive way to report an exact number that left, he shouldn't have reported half left. He should have said 'many left' or 'a lot left' or something more vague. It is obvious Paul has become bored with covering Pitt football.

Jerry Micco: Obvious he's bored? I've got to tell him to stop spending all that time covering the team, then. The attendance isn't an issue Saturday if some fans, a noticeable amount, don't leave that game at 21-6. You may have a beef with the about half comment, but neither Paul nor I have heard one thing from the Pitt athletic officials about the statement. And since true attendance is not announced (it's tickets sold, everyone does this) we have no idea what the starting number is. I mean, don't you think it odd that ANYONE left a 21-6 game with more than a quarter left to play?

Homey: I haven't seen much written about it by Zeise, but can you defend Wanny's decision to kick the FG from the UConn 2 yard line, trailing 14-3 in the 3rd quarter? After the kickoff, UConn had the ball at their 39 yard line (thus gaining 37 yards of field position), and promptly drove down to make it 21-6. I'm always stunned at these decisions.

Jerry Micco: I thought it odd that he kicked there because I always think a team, especially a college team, can score from that close. Offenses have passed defenses in the college game by a long way. I guess he wanted points and figured the defense could hold. He was wrong on the latter, but bottom line: Pitt wins.

StarkRavingMad: Has Tomlin ever said that a rookie is ready to play? It is hard to think of one. Who was that coach of the Redskins in the 1970s who built the team with old veterans, nad had no interest in rookies?

Jerry Micco: That would be George Allen, and no, I've never heard Tomlin say a rookie is ready to play. And he's probably right. It's a tough sport to learn and the jump to the NFL from college is pretty high. Some guys get it right away. Others take some time. It's the beauty of watching these guys grow up and mature. Makes you appreciate how much they work to get there.

James_Taipei: Any chance the Pirates sign a free agent other than a utility infielder?

Jerry Micco: I think there is a chance if the price is right. I think they'd look at the outfield and bullpen for additional help, but they are not going to spend a lot of money on one guy for one year. And this year's crop of FAs is not very deep.

StarkRavingMad: Quite a few of my acquaintances have developed the opinion that Wannstedt is a great recruiter and leader, but a fairly lousy game day coach. The opinion is the accumulated effect of game day decisions that are individually curious, like the decision to kick a field goal from the 2 yard line at 14-3. Can you think of any brilliant adjustments that Pitt has made, or inspired game day decisions that Wannstedt has made? It is hard to think of any.

Jerry Micco: I can't recall if he has or hasn't, though Paul Zeise, who does a chat weekly, would be a better person to answer that. Wannstedt can answer his critics with a Big East title and a BCS bowl game. Those are both doable this season. He's proven he can win (8-4 in 2008) and he's doing it again this year. But the ultimate is winning a league title and then, eventually, a national title.

KS_Steeler: I hate saying it, but doesn't Woodley seem like Kendrell Bell pt. 2 -- 2nd round pick at linebacker, starts off great, and then just vanishes.

Jerry Micco: I'd hate to count this guy out after five games this year. Other teams may be schemeing to force him to drop into coverage or always throwing early. He seemed to wake up at the end of the Detroit game, so maybe that jump starts him. I think he's a very talented guy and will be just fine as the season progresses.

StarkRavingMad: Any predictions on the next round of the baseball playoffs? That is, other than the predictions that the weather will be cold, the tickets will be extremely expensive, and the games will be played at hours that are not conducive for watching by anyone who works for a living?

Jerry Micco: As I said earlier, I think the Phillies and Yankees will play for the title. But I'm really pulling for the two LA teams because I've always been a Dodger fan (not as much as a Pirate fan, but always admired their teams and organization), and the Angels are a fun team to watch. Besides, how can anyone root for the mighty Yankees?

Jerry Micco: Hey folks, I need to get back to some other stuff. Thanks for taking the time to join me in the chat today. It's always my favorite hour of the work week. I'll see you next Wednesday at noon. As always, there will be a lot to discuss.

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