First Call: Steelers 'overrated'? Then other NFL 'elites' have some explaining to do. Hockey talk, as well. - TribLIVE

Think the Steelers are overrated? Well, what does that say for the rest of the NFL’s elite?

How much are you willing to spend on a hockey card? What are you willing to bet on the College Football Playoff? And what local kid is making good in the hockey world in 2020?

We answer all those questions in Monday’s “First Call.”

So, here’s a question

So many people want to say the Steelers are overrated at 11-0.

OK. I get it. Some doubt the Steelers as a Super Bowl favorite. But if that’s the case, consider what we saw Sunday in the NFL.

• The 11-1 Kansas City Chiefs struggled to outlast the 4-8 Denver Broncos, 22-16, at home.

• The 8-4 Seattle Seahawks lost at home to the 5-7 New York Giants.

• The 8-4 Tennessee Titans fell 41-35 at home to the Cleveland Browns and were losing 38-7 at one point.

• The 10-2 New Orleans Saints only won by five points (21-16) against the 4-8 Atlanta Falcons.

So, are they all overrated, too? And, if so, who then is actually “properly rated”?

I’ll say it for the 500th time, if you don’t think the Steelers are flat-out better than the likes of the Green Bay Packers (9-3), the Chiefs, Seahawks and Saints … fine.

If you are picking someone else to win the Super Bowl, no big deal. That doesn’t offend me. And it shouldn’t offend any Steelers fan. Heck, I’m still picking K.C. myself.

But that’s totally different than the attempts to make Pittsburgh’s 11-0 record illegitimate. And way too many folks nationally are doing exactly that.

Looking ahead?

If you are looking ahead to the College Football Playoff odds, Super Book Sports has them for you.

New @CFBPlayoff title odds via @SuperBookSports

Bama 4/5
Clem 3/1
OhSt 7/2
ND 14/1
UF 30/1
TexasA&M, Cincy 60/1
OU 100/1
USC 200/1
Miami 300/1
Coastal, Colorado, UGA 500/1
Indiana, Iowa, IowaSt, N’western 1,000/1
UCLA 2,000/1
Buffalo 10,000/1

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 7, 2020

Notre Dame haters are gonna hate this opinion, too. But at 14/1, at least as opposed to the odds of those other three top schools, the Fighting Irish aren’t a bad bet.

I’m not saying I think Notre Dame will win. I’m just saying — at those long odds as opposed to the jumble of the other three top teams — that’s a logical bet for a payout.

Especially given that the Irish have beaten Clemson once already.

Timmons time

Bridgeville native Jordan Timmons is off to a great start for the Robert Morris hockey team.

The UConn transfer is in his first season with the Colonials. And he just registered a natural hat trick over the weekend against Air Force.

Timmons cleans up another rebound and RMU is rolling! #RMUnite | 🔴🔵 pic.twitter.com/f9NNg5LRKr

— RMU Men’s Hockey (@RMUMHockey) December 5, 2020

Timmons scored three goals in a row during the first period en route to a 4-2 Colonials win over the Falcons. He has netted six goals in the team’s first seven games.

The Colonials also won 4-1 Friday. So they are now 5-2 on the season and 3-1 in conference play. The Colonials battle Niagara in a home-and-home series this weekend.

The Purple Eagles visit Clearview Arena on Neville Island on Friday. The Colonials go up to Niagara Saturday.

Got that lyin’ around?

For card collectors, here’s a rarity.

A Wayne Gretzky rookie card could be the first hockey card to break the $1-million milestone.

Via the Toronto Sun, “A mint condition 1979 O-Pee-Chee Gretzky rookie card is expected to become hockey’s first $1-million (U.S.) collectible card, if all goes according to the plan of Heritage Auctions.”

The paper adds, “The same consigner who is selling the O-Pee-Chee Gretzky card is also selling the Topps Gretzky rookie card. About a dozen others are up for grabs. It’s the exact same photograph. But mint condition O-Pee-Chees are much harder to come by.”

Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via Twitter. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.

Categories: Robert Morris | Sports | Steelers/NFL | Breakfast With Benz