Steve Brownlee

Just got to thinking about who the most important and the most valuable players are in sports today.

You can usually tell what sport the TV pundit is affiliated with based on his (never seems to be her?!?!) answer.

Many now are saying it’s the quarterback in football, but hockey people could easily say its their goalies, baseball people the pitcher who specializes as a closer, and even basketball might say the point guard.

They can all make their points, but it does seem nowadays that quarterback seems to come up the most often.

The evidence seems to be there — without a quality QB, at least in the NFL, your season is sunk.

You can make it with a substitute goalie, a closer-by-committee in baseball or a different player to distribute the basketball.

However, I’ve been thinking long and hard on this “value” thing, which is why you may have seen smoke or steam coming out of The Mining Journal office lately.

OK, just kidding, but it’s not that I’d necessarily knock QB off its pedestal as most important player for another sport, but maybe make it at a four-(or more?) way tie.

I think what a quarterback is is not really the most “important” position in sports, but the most “irreplaceable.”

Those other sports’ key positions, if one guy goes away and someone else takes his place, you just continue playing the game.

Those other sports have their important positions because of the skill and talent involved — a hockey goalie catching little rubber pucks flying through the air at 100 mph, a closer fooling batters with crazy velocity or movement, or a basketball guard really seeing the floor well.

But a QB has to know his team’s playbook forward and backward, and as has been said, has to know not only everything he’s doing, but everything everyone else on offense is doing.

That’s what so irreplaceable. The backup QB may also know all this stuff, but usually doesn’t have the skills the starter has, both physically and mentally, as in organizationally.

The position pays so well nowadays that the 32 best QBs may likely be on 32 different teams, meaning your backup is at best the 33rd most gifted QB around.

Bringing someone in off the street has an incredibly steep learning curve for what he has to learn.

That’s what made Joe Flacco coming off his couch and emerging as Cleveland’s “savior” last season so crazy.

Just something to chew on while you wait to see tonight’s game, or if, like me, you refuse to pay extra for that privilege, waiting for Sunday to come around.

Here’s this week’s games:

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Today, 8:15 p.m.

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New England at New York Jets — Just a few years ago, you could see Bill Belichick wringing his hands like a mad scientist waiting for the Jets to show up on the schedule so he could do some seriously diabolical things to their QB.

Now it almost seems the shoe’s on the other foot, what with New York having the really over-the-top defense and a veteran QB in Aaron Rodgers to boot. Give the Pats a chance in their rematch later this season, but for now, Jets, 23-19.

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Sunday, 1 p.m.

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New York Giants at Cleveland — Not sure what to think of Cleveland in their Jekyll-and-Hyde play so far. But no worries, the Giants are about as predictable as that 1970s ketchup bottle when they sang Carly Simon’s “Anticipation.” The Giants — they’re slow good — not exactly a slogan for a winning NFL team! Browns, 27-17.

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Chicago at Indianapolis — Indy’s been showing off its porous rush defense, enough that Caleb Williams should be able to run for first downs even if he gets confused looking for an open receiver. Bears, 21-16.

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Houston at Minnesota — I don’t care who is out injured for the 49ers, that was still a pretty impressive win by Minny-soda on Sunday. Rinse and repeat. Vikings 30-24.

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Philadelphia at New Orleans — Even with reverse momentum saying the Saints should be looking at a letdown, throwing a team in flux like the Eagles into the Superdome seems a bit unfair. Saints, 33-30.

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Los Angeles Chargers at Pittsburgh — This may be the real coming-out party for the winner of this game, even with both already at 2-0. Something tells me that L.A. coach Jim Harbaugh can match the Steelers blow for blow and beat Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin at his own game — for one game anyway. Chargers, 23-22.

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Denver at Tampa Bay — Teams playing rookie QBs this early have to pay a price in the standings, even as they get these young bucks valuable experience. Like Denver is doing. Buccaneers, 24-20.

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Green Bay at Tennessee — This feels like a trap game. The Packers are flying high, but will new QB Malik Willis get too hyped up playing his old team? And will the Titans coaches know all of Willis’ secret kryptonite?

Still, just let Josh Jacobs & Co. run roughshod while Tennessee QB Will Levis makes his dumb collection of plays he makes each week. Packers, 31-22.

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Sunday, 4 p.m.

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Carolina at Las Vegas — Someone’s playing the Panthers? Simple enough. Raiders (otherwise known as “not Carolina”), 34-23.

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Miami at Seattle — Without Tua Tagovailoa, the Dolphins had to go shopping for their version of Malik Willis this week. But as Tyler Huntley probably won’t be ready to play immediately, they’re stuck with Skylar Thompson behind center. But in the longest NFL road trip possible, give me the solidly playing Seahawks, 33-20.

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Detroit at Arizona — Is the “Toaster” in the desert with Kyler Murray and his new shiny plaything, Marvin Harrison Jr., the right way for the Lions to right the ship? I don’t think so. Cardinals, 36-31.

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Baltimore at Dallas — Hear that beeping? That’s both teams backing up like one of those parking-lot snowplows in winter’s dead of night. I’ll take Baltimore’s superior run game here. Ravens, 24-20.

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San Francisco at Los Angeles Rams — Yikes! for the Rams. All those injuries really do add up if you’re not as talent-deep as the 49ers. Speaking of San Fran, give me the 49ers, 29-23.

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Sunday, 8:20 p.m.

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Kansas City at Atlanta — They may not be pretty — though they don’t have any problems with dandruff or auto insurance — but KC knows how to win, even as the Falcons showed on Monday night that they’re at least good amateurs in pulling victory out of the jaws of defeat. Chiefs, 28-27.

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Monday, 7:30 p.m.

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Jacksonville at Buffalo — The first of back-to-back double Monday nights as there will be four of them all-told throughout the season. Apparently this game with its earlier start will be on ESPN, the other on ABC.

The Jaguars look in disarray, so I’ll avoid them until they figure things out — or play Carolina or the Giants. Bills, 24-19.

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Monday, 8:15 p.m.

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Washington at Cincinnati — Since the Bengals march to the beat of their own drummer, which includes playing five preseason games while the rest of the league plays three, it’s now time for Cincy to begin its regular season. Bengals, 38-25.

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Last week — 7-9, 44 percent. Season — 19-13, 59 percent.

Steve Brownlee can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 552. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.