Make no mistake, Ben Roethlisberger was at the right place at the right time when he left Miami of Ohio a year early and was taken with the 11th pick in the first round of

2004’s draft. He came onto a team that had most of the pieces already in place. They had veteran leadership in Jerome Bettis and Hines Ward, playmakers on the outside with Plaxico Burress and Antwaan Randle-El and a veteran offensive line. He came onto a team that was halfway there anyway. His only task was to not screw it up and his rookie season, he managed not to and they won the Super Bowl.

Since then, reviews have been mixed on Big Ben. He’s struggled with injuries and is interception prone at times but for the most part is an efficient, reliable starting quarterback in the league. He’s not Peyton Manning, he’s not Tom Brady, he’s not Carson Palmer but the Steelers sure are paying him like he is.

If  you’re a Steelers fan, you have to wonder how this will ultimately effect the rest of your team. The team has been very firm on how it pays veterans and has shown that it’s not afraid to let a beloved veteran walk (see: Joey Porter). But what does this mean for players like Troy Polamalu and Willie Parker and Santonio Holmes and Heath Miller when it’s time for them to re-sign? And perhaps most intriguing of all, what happens when it’s time to re-sign Hines Ward? The money they’re funneling into Big Ben will have long term consequences for this team as division rivals Cleveland and Baltimore continue to try to upgrade their teams through free agency. Meanwhile, this off season, all the Steelers have done is re-signed Big Ben through 2016 and let Alan Faneca leave.

What will 2008 hold for the Steelers and their new $102 million quarterback? Will it be another 32 and 11 year or will we see 2006 redux where Roethlisberger went 18 and 23? Steelers fans have 102 million reasons to be very concerned about the future of their franchise.

Steeler fans, apparently, are none too sure that this is a good deal for their team either. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has a poll on their site that shows that nearly a third of the 1,100 people that have taken the poll believe the Steelers gave the quarterback too much.

With all due respect to Vic Carruci of NFL.com, a great sportswriter who I grew up reading in the Buffalo News, he’s out of his mind.

Pittsburgh is for real.

In an article today on NFL.com, Carruci writes that he is unmoved by Pittsburgh’s complete dismantling of Baltimore on Monday night and is not willing to include the 6-2 Steelers among the league’s elite. And I think he’s nuts.

For me, it wasn’t that the Steelers obliterated the Ravens, it was how they did it. For me a perfect encapsulation of the personality of this team was when Hines Ward went right at Ed Reed, arguably one of the league’s best defensive players and de-cleated him. This team isn’t afraid of anyone. Not New England. Not Indianapolis. Not anyone.

An offense that is coming together nicely is paired with the league’s best defense. Check the books. 1st in points allowed, 1st in yards allowed, 1st in passing yards allowed and fourth best in the league against the rush. If Ben Roethlisberger can string together games like the one he had Monday night, a game where, irrespective of the touchdowns he threw, he played within himself and was accurate, this team is going to be very scary come playoff time.

Mark it down. If the Steelers have to travel to the RCA Dome in January to play the Colts. They will beat them. Soundly.

In more exciting news, my hometown,Terre Haute, Ind., totally got a shout-out during Tony Dungy’s appearance on Letterman last night to plug his new book.

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No, seriously…

A 16-year-old drove his truck to an island in the middle of a shallow Pennsylvania river and couldn’t get back.

Inmates split on Woody Allen.

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Eagles corner Sheldon Brown says leveling Reggie Bush in the playoffs last year was like running through a cardboard box.

New Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is already putting the team through the ringer.

What is Brady Quinn thinking? I think on draft day, everybody was kind of pulling for the guy to get drafted because of the embarrassment he caused himself by showing up to the draft without knowing where he would go or how far he’d fall. And now he has grossly overestimated his value and is pissing off an entire city that wants to embrace him. Cleveland wants to love Brady Quinn. He needs to quit acting like a petulant child and get to camp. What a dope.

You can still chew snuff at Tennessee football games but Neyland Stadium will now be smoke-free .

Bobby Petrino trying to keep the Falcons focused on the game on the field. Good luck.

LSU senior tailback Alley Broussard is leaving the team.

Matt Leinart’s legal battle with his ex-girlfriend Brynn Cameron could get very public and very messy.

Cotton Bowl executives are lobbying to make the Dallas-based bowl a BCS bowl.

SI’s Stewart Mandel on how the Michael Vick scandal has effected Virginia Tech.

Eagles draftee Kevin Kolb signs with the team. I was so hoping for a holdout.

Boise State running back (and publicity hound) Ian Johnson has hired extra security for his weekend wedding following racist threats.

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Well-rounded news…

USAToday profiles fanboys.

Naomi Watt, Stuart Townsend and Joseph Fiennes have all been cast for roles in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. Not so fast.

Blockbuster may be losing money but it’s beating Netflix, says BusinessWeek.

Facebook founder finds himself in court; being sued by former colleagues.

Though relatively small companies, XM and Sirius merger is huge for the future of satellite radio, says Washington Post.

Has the mystery behind J.J. Abrams’ “mystery” project been solved?

How a movie poster got me totally excited for a Western.

The cover of Bottom Line fav. Kanye West’s new album, Graduation.

Blender’s top 25 most influential people in online music.

The Huffington Post’s Eric Williams thinks a Seth Rogan-led Green Hornet movie, or any Green Hornet movie, is a bad idea.