For those doing some online football betting, the Steelers are currently listed as 7-point favorites.

Pittsburgh has not lost three straight since Oct. 22-Nov. 5, 2006, and since Dec. 7, 2003 the Steelers have won 34 of 43 at Heinz Field.

Add to that the fact that the Chargers have never won in 13 regular-season matchups in Pittsburgh and you can spot the trend.

Then again, San Diego is off to its best start in Norv Turner’s three seasons as coach despite being last in the AFC with 66.3 rushing yards per game.

San Diego linebacker Shawne Merriman is questionable against the Steelers after leaving in the third quarter last Sunday with a groin injury.

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Tomlinson, who vowed to bounce back this season and dispel the notion that NFL running backs trend way downward once they hit age 30, suffered a sprained ankle in the Chargers’ come-from-behind win against the Raiders on Monday night. L.T. hasn’t practiced all week and has been officially ruled out against Baltimore. That means Darren Sproles will take over as the featured back, with Michael Bennett also likely to get some work. In addition, the Chargers will be without starting center Nick Hardwick and possibly guard Louis Vasquez.

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Now, Sproles was very good last week against the Raiders. He replaced Tomlinson on pretty much every third down even before L.T. was hurt and had nine rushes for 23 yards but also caught five passes for 43 yards in addition to his three punt and five kickoff returns (one for 59 yards). His 5-yard touchdown run with 18 seconds remaining gave the Chargers the victory. But Sproles is a little guy (5-foot-6, 185 pounds), and it’s rather unlikely he can handle something like 15-20 carries a game (along with his kick-return duties), especially against the ferocious Ravens defense that owns the NFL’s longest current streak of not allowing a 100-yard rusher: 36 games.

It was Baltimore’s offense that shined last week. The Ravens, who are 3-point underdogs this week on Bodog, had a team-record 501 yards in beating Kansas City. Second-year QB Joe Flacco looked tremendous, throwing a career-high 43 times for a career-best 301 yards and three touchdowns. When he has a TD pass in his young career, Baltimore is 10-2. By the way, San Diego’s pass defense was No. 31 in the league last year.

And it’s not like the Ravens abandoned the run last week, as Ray Rice rushed for 108 yards – part of Baltimore’s 198 yards on the ground. The Ravens had more first downs than the Chiefs had rushing yards (29), so that 38-24 score was very misleading.

With the Chargers’ offensive line in shambles, the Ravens’ defensive front should dominate. But San Diego QB Philip Rivers is 22-5 in his career at Qualcomm Stadium. Rivers will be throwing more than usual this week with Tomlinson out. The Ravens were 5-3 on the road last year and then won two playoffs games away from home.

San Diego and Baltimore have split six previous meetings.

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The Raiders, who are 9-point underdogs, traded for five-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Richard Seymour on Sunday in a bold move that shows that they aren't content with their roster and will go to great lengths to make it better.

Brandon Marshall returned to the Denver Broncos on Sunday. The team's most productive wide receiver a season ago arrived early for the team's 8 a.m. meeting and participated in the first practice in preparation for the season opener Sunday in Cincinnati.

The 10.5-point underdog Kansas City Chiefs will be in tough Sunday when they travel to Baltimore to take on the Ravens.

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The Chargers and Falcons have played just five times in the preseason, with the Chargers winning four of the five. They last met in 2000 with the Bolts winning 28-14 at the Georgia Dome. Atlanta’s lone win in the preseason was played at a neutral site, 21-17, in the 1994 Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. In the regular season, the Falcons hold a 7-1 series edge over the Chargers.

The Falcons are listed as 3-point home favorites in this one.

Atlanta has been dominant over the past five years in their Week 3 preseason game, going a perfect 5-0 straight up. Can they make it 6-0 on Saturday?

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In addition, LaDainian Tomlinson seemed to slow down last season, averaging just 3.8 yards per carry. Was that a fluke? Maybe not, as LT seemed nicked up all season. But Tomlinson, the former two-time rushing champion, also will be 30 entering this season, and that's often the magic number for running backs to really hit the wall in the NFL.

Was it really a huge surprise that San Diego started last year 4-8? Yet the Bolts rallied to win the AFC West yet again (thanks to Denver’s choke) and won a playoff game; they were the first team to ever reach the playoffs after starting 4-8.

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And there were very good signs last year that bode well for 2009: QB Philip Rivers emerged as one of truly elite quarterbacks in the league in 2008 with a team-record 34 touchdown passes and a league-leading 105.5 rating. Receiver Vincent Jackson stepped up with his first 1,000-yard season. And San Diego found a major offensive weapon in running back Darren Sproles, who was stellar late in the year and in the playoff win over the Colts when Tomlinson was ailing.

Plus the Charger defense seemed to come alive last year when coordinator Ted Cottrell was fired and Ron Rivera took over. So that unit should be very good again this year with Merriman back. Frankly, this is easily the most talented team in the AFC West, which should be a cakewalk. If guys like Tomlinson, tight end. Antonio Gates and cornerback Antonio Cromartie (he was burned often last year) can return to form, this team could compete for the best record in the AFC because it should be 6-0 in the division.

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Is a Super Bowl run possible? It definitely is, but San Diego would probably need home-field advantage to beat a New England or Pittsburgh (or any cold-weather team) in the playoffs.

Here is the Chargers' 2009 schedule, and we'll break it down after:
Sept. 14 at Oakland Raiders, 10:15 p.m.
Sept. 20 vs. Baltimore Ravens, 4:15 p.m.
Sept. 27 vs. Miami Dolphins, 4:15 p.m.
Oct. 4 at Pittsburgh Steelers, 8:20 p.m.
Week 5: Bye
Oct. 19 vs. Denver Broncos, 8:30 p.m.
Oct. 25 at Kansas City Chiefs, 1 p.m.
Nov. 1 vs. Oakland Raiders, 4:05 p.m.
Nov. 8 at New York Giants, 4:15 p.m.
Nov. 15 vs. Philadelphia Eagles, 4:15 p.m.
Nov. 22 at Denver Broncos, 4:15 p.m.
Nov. 29 vs. Kansas City Chiefs, 4:05 p.m.
Dec. 6 at Cleveland Browns, 4:05 p.m.
Dec. 13 at Dallas Cowboys, 4:15 p.m.
Dec. 20 vs. Cincinnati Bengals, 4:05 p.m.
Dec. 25 at Tennessee Titans, 7:30 p.m.
Jan. 3 vs. Washington Redskins, 4:15 p.m.

Strength of schedule: 17th (opponents combined to go 123-131-2, .484, in 2008)
Projected record: 11-5
Bodog over/under total: 9 1/2
Bodog odds to win AFC West: 2/7
Bodog odds to win AFC: 11/2
Bodog odds to win Super Bowl XLIV: 10/1

The Chargers have started slowly in the past two seasons, so it's vital they turn that around in 2009 for any hopes of a top-two seed in the AFC.

Certainly San Diego should be favored in all three September games. Do you think the Chargers and Oakland are tired of seeing each other to start the season? And what’s with the game always being at the Raiders' place? This will be the seventh time the Chargers and Raiders open the season against each other, and the previous six all were in Oakland, which has won five of those six. No way the Raiders make it six of seven, in my opinion, considering they have lost 11 in a row in this series.

Obviously those next three games will be much tougher for the Chargers, facing 2008 playoff foes Baltimore, Miami and Pittsburgh. It will be San Diego's third game in less than a year in the Steel City, and the Bolts didn't win either of the previous two. Still, I expect a 3-1 start to the year with the bye probably coming at a good time.

Coming out of the bye, look for a three-game winning streak through division foes. The games against the Giants and Eagles could both be Super Bowl previews; I expect a San Diego split there. By the way, it's the first time the Bolts have visited the Giants since memorable "Snowball Game" in 1995. It's Philly's first visit to San Diego in 11 years. December has been when this team has taken off under Turner, going 9-0 the past two seasons. The Chargers won't be unbeaten in the month this year, not with games at Dallas and Tennessee. That Titans game is San Diego's first ever on Christmas.

As noted above, if San Diego can sweep the AFC West (it went 5-1 in the division last year), 11 wins should be very doable. Whether or not that's good enough to edge out fellow AFC favorites New England and Pittsburgh for a home game in the playoffs is the big question. But with the right playoff draw, this team could make it to the Super Bowl.

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This is the first chance for Seahawk fans to see T.J. Houshmandzadah in game action. Again, as a starter, he won’t be seeing much action, so tune in early.

Now if you are a Chargers fan who lives in San Diego, you will be out of luck altogether. The Chargers say their exhibition opener against the Seahawks will be blacked out on local TV.

The game will be blacked out within a 75-mile radius of the stadium.

That is really too bad considering running back LaDainian Tomlinson has said he wants to play this preseason for the first time since the 2005 campaign.

Seahawks head coach Jim Mora hasn't yet decided how much he will play recently signed LB Aaron Curry in the team's preseason opener.

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No fans will be allowed to be on hand, as a water main break during the offseason has deemed the area where the grandstands sit unsafe. The team will have three public workouts in August at Qualcomm Stadium.

That seems like a handy excuse to keep some pressure off the team as they prepare for the season.

Last year saw coach Norv Turner continue to put his fingerprints on the offense, which meant throwing more than running, which you can’t fault since Philip Rivers threw for a franchise-record 34 touchdowns with a league-leading 105.5 rating.

When the Chargers (+1200 to win the Super Bowl) kick off the season, be wary of LaDainian Tomlinson, who will be eager to show there is plenty of tread on his tires.

Well, LaDainian Tomlinson, the best running back of this decade, turned 30 on June 23. So should San Diego Chargers futures bettors on Bodog be worried about the Bolts this season?

Perhaps Tomlinson's downward trend actually started at 29. Last year, L.T. had career-lows of 292 carries and 1,110 yards rushing. His 3.8 yards-per-carry average, 11 rushing touchdowns, long run of 45 yards, 52 receptions and one touchdown catch all were the second-worst totals of his career.

In all fairness, Tomlinson was bothered by a toe injury all season. Then he hurt his groin in the season finale and Darren Sproles exploded with back-to-back 100-yard-plus games in the finale against the Broncos — although Tomlinson nearly reached the century mark in that game – and the playoff win against the Colts. L.T. was forced out of that Colts game after just five carries and missed the divisional playoff against Pittsburgh, which the Chargers lost.

San Diego thought so much of the diminutive Sproles that the team put the franchise tag on him, and he signed the one-year tender but can become an unrestricted free agent after this season.

That's why 2009 is so big for Tomlinson, who got a reworked deal of his own but not at more money.

I found a great stat that took the averages of the top 50 running backs by yards in NFL history and their numbers in the year they were 29 and then 30. Those players' average rushing yards in a season dropped by more than 150, and touchdowns dropped by a little more than 20 percent.

If you want a recent example, take former Seahawk Shaun Alexander. He was the 2005 NFL MVP at age 28 after rushing for 1,880 yards and 27 TDs. By age 30 those numbers were 716 yards and four touchdowns. Injuries caught up to him, as they do most 30-year-olds and as they seem to be catching up to Tomlinson.

There are always exceptions to the rule, and runners such as Curtis Martin and Emmitt Smith had very good seasons at age 30, but those truly are the exceptions.

For what it's worth, Tomlinson says he is 100 percent healthy and motivated to break Smith’s NFL rushing record.

"That's the one thing that I'm eager to prove, is that doesn't necessarily go for every player," he said. “Turn 30, that doesn't mean that you can't play anymore. There are some guys out there that defy the odds, and I'm eager to prove that."

At Bodog, San Diego is 6/1 odds to win the AFC this year, but could the Bolts do that without a strong season from Tomlinson? If you are betting on San Diego this season, then you are basically betting that L.T. bucks the trend of the majority of backs his age.

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Eagles QB Donovan McNabb threw for 300 yards last Sunday against Minnesota to take the win in the first-round; and the Giants QB Eli Manning is coming off a bye week (that could be huge). Both teams are strong defensively and both coaches are super eager to advance to the Conference Championship. Still, the Bodog Sportsbook favors the Giants in this one by -4 and the game's total is at 39.5.

A few betting trends to consider:
Philadelphia is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games;
Philadelphia is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games;
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Philadelphia's last 6 games on the road;
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of Philadelphia's last 12 games when playing on the road against NY Giants;
NY Giants are 7-1 SU in their last 8 games at home;
NY Giants are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games at home;
The total has gone UNDER in 10 of the NY Giants last 12 games when playing at home against Philadelphia;
NY Giants are 9-2 ATS in their last 11 games.

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San Diego Chargers at Pittsburgh Steelers: 4:45 p.m. EST on CBS

The Pittsburgh Steelers led the N.F.L. in total defense, pass defense and scoring defense, and was second against the run, allowing only 80.2 yards a game. (The Steelers have also allowed only 13.9 points on average per game…that's the lowest in the league, too.) With LaDainian Tomlinson out with a torn groin tendon (more than likely, anyway) and a comparatively weaker defense, QB Philip Rivers better hope that RB Darren Sproles brings his "A" game along with his Velcro-like grip to this matchup if the Bolts want to advance.

A few betting trends to consider:
San Diego is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games;
San Diego is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games;
The total has gone OVER in 16 of San Diego's last 24 games on the road;
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Diego's last 6 games when playing Pittsburgh;
Pittsburgh is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games when playing at home against San Diego;
Pittsburgh is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games;
Pittsburgh is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games.

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