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Oddsmakers tab Steelers among favorites to win Super Bowl LI

Peter Diana/Post-Gazette

Oddsmakers tab Steelers among favorites to win Super Bowl LI

The optimism for the Steelers 2016 season continues in many corners and not just in Pittsburgh. Various oddsmakers have made them among the favorites to win the next Super Bowl and now one of them has set odds that they will win as many games as anyone.

Bovada this week issued its over-under odds for number of wins by each team and set the Steelers’ number at 10.5. No other team posted a larger number. There are four teams tied with the Steelers at 10.5 wins but only one, New England, is in the AFC. The others are in the NFC: Carolina, Green Bay and Seattle.

Cleveland, not surprisingly, rests at the bottom with an over-under of 4.5 victories. The other two teams in the AFC North: Cincinnati is listed at 9.5 and Baltimore at 8.5.

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It is interesting that despite the NFL’s four-game suspension of Tom Brady, the Patriots remain the favorite not only in the AFC but to win the Super Bowl, according to Bovada and other odds-makers. The Steelers are tied for third to win it with Green Bay, both behind No. 2 Seattle, although some books have the Steelers (10-1) slightly ahead of the Packers (9-1).

Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward walks off the field thru confetti after losing Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
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So, get your bets down, or not.

--- Onto a few Ask Ed questions. Send me yours to ebouchette@post-gazette.com

--- YOU: I noticed when reviewing the coaches from all the other NFL teams that they employ two DB coaches (one for cornerbacks and one for safeties) while the Steelers employed only one (Carnell Lake). I think Lake is a good DB coach but with the passing game becoming more than the running game wouldn't the Steeler db's benefit more with 2 coaches? Also do the Steelers still belong to the scouting service BLESTO along with the Browns, Lions, and Eagles? It seems like none of these teams have been drafting as well as non-BLESTO teams. Are the Steelers in a long term contract with BLESTO?

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ED: Heck, if you think two are better, why not four? The Steelers used to have two coaches in the secondary and I’m not sure things were any better. They used to have two offensive line coaches too, and I can tell you that when they had two special teams coaches, their special teams were not very good. More coaches do not mean better play necessarily. They have two linebackers coaches.

As for BLESTO, the Steelers were an original member of that organization and Hall of Fame player Jack Butler was the executive director of BLESTO for many, many years with its headquarters in Pittsburgh. Tom Modrak, a former Steelers personnel man now heads BLESTO, which is based near Ponte Vedra, Fla. In a recent study commissioned by the Washington Post, the Steelers were judged to be the most successful team in the draft since free agency began so I’m not sure what your beef might be with BLESTO.

The 12 member teams who form BLESTO: Atlanta, Buffalo, Chicago, Cleveland, Dalas, Detroit, Houston, Jacksonville Miami, Minnesota, the New York Giants and the Steelers.

--- YOU: As the NFL has increasingly become a pass-first league, with 4 and 5 receiver sets become base offenses for many teams, defenses have adjusted by fielding smaller, faster sets. As you've noted several times, Nose Tackles have become role players because of this defensive evolution. Do you think some teams that lack a great QB will try to exploit this trend by fielding heavier, stronger offensive sides and running the ball 60-70% of the time? Could a team go retro and run a wishbone offense on the premise that they could maul 230 lbs linebackers and 190 lbs cornerbacks?

 Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison heads to the quarterback during afternoon practice at St Vincent College Latrobe Pa.
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ED: The Dallas Cowboys are among those who are trying, even though Tony Romo remains among the “elite” quarterbacks in the league, according to some quarters. With the rules heavily favoring the passing game, however, I do not see it lasting long. The old-fashioned blocking fullbacks have nearly disappeared from the league and tight ends have long been valued by most teams more for their ability to catch than to block. Scoring continues to climb in the NFL so that the old, bruising days of controlling the clock by running and playing great defense are rare. I supposed we could see a few teams try it, but I don’t think they will if they have a great or even good quarterback. The closest we might see is for them to strike a balance.

First Published: May 20, 2016, 12:23 p.m.

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