Think back to the end of the 2003 NFL season. The Steelers finished 6-10 in 2003, largely because of three major factors: (1) the offensive line was riddled with injuries to the point that Alan Faneca started several games at left tackle, (2) the starters in the secondary – Chad Scott, DeWayne Washington, Lee Flowers, and Brent Alexander – were old and slow, and (3) the pass rush suffered because Jason Gildon was old and Joey Porter had been shot in the backside the week before the season started. The prospect of the 2004 season was not a happy one for most of Steelers nation. The problems that hurt the team in 2003 seemed too numerous to overcome in one offseason. The media was openly critical of Bill Cowher, and had a lot of fun pointing out that he had missed the playoffs four times in the past six years (even though the Steelers made the playoffs in 2001 and 2002).

During the off-season between 2003 and 2004, the Steelers addressed each of their major problems, and then some. Some of the help came internally, with Marvel Smith and Joey Porter getting healthy. The Steelers released several members of the underperforming defense, including Jason Gildon, defensive coordinator Tim Lewis and three-fourths of the starting secondary. They rehired Dick LeBeau to coach the defense, and promoted Troy Polamalu, Chris Hope and Deshea Townsend to starting roles. The Steelers also addressed their needs in the draft, selecting cornerback Ricardo Colclough in the second round and shoring up the offensive line with Max Starks in the third round (and they took some quarterback in the first round…can’t remember who…).

The results of the offseason moves were plain to see. The Steelers won their opener against the Raiders, and in doing so won the type of game that they had lost several times in 2003. They went on to win 15 games and advance to the AFC title game. I would call that a nice turnaround.

Why bring up the 2003-2004 Steelers now? Imagine for a second that the Steelers hadn’t addressed their needs following 2003. Imagine if they kept Washington, Flowers, and Gildon. Imagine if they made an aging corner like Deion Sanders their marquee acquisition and claimed that he was going to help the team get back to the playoffs. Imagine if they had drafted Kellen Winslow in the first round. Steelers nation would have been irate. Such a complete failure to improve the team would never be accepted by either the media or the fan base. (As it was, there already was a lot of criticism of the Steelers heading into 2004, even with all of the good moves.) Such a series of moves would have made the Steelers look a lot like their North Shore neighbors, the Pirates.

Both the Steelers organization and their fans expect a certain product–namely, a competitive team that often makes the playoffs and therefore has a chance to win the Super Bowl. The Steelers generally make good on this promise; they have qualified for the playoffs ten times in Cowher’s fourteen years. The Steelers never complain about being in a small market, or not being able to compete, or being broke. They make smart personnel decisions–often smarter than most of the league–and keep turning out good, competitive teams.

The Pirates, on the other hand, constantly whine about their competitive disadvantage. While the Steelers have been racking up playoff seasons, the Pirates have churned out 72-win teams (with the occasional 62-100 club for good measure). Even in this young season, it looks like another 72-90 season for the Bucs.

I see two major issues here. One is that the Pirates consistently offer a substandard product. You have to assume that a team run by reasonably competent people would eventually put together a .500 season based on luck alone. The Pirates can’t even come close. They are consistently one of the two or three worst teams in all of baseball. It often looks like they are trying to lose (and I’m not completely convinced that they are not).

The second problem is worse: We, the fans, let the Pirates keep losing. Unlike the Steelers, we allow the Pirates to not only survive, but thrive, with very low expectations. Remember, it was only a few months ago that many fans viewed the Steelers season–one in which they won 11 regular-season games and ultimately the Super Bowl–as lost. We would never expect so much from the Pirates. Some of us might hope that the Bucs could someday play a meaningful game after May 1, but I think it’s safe to say that most Pirate fans are happy just to have a team and a pretty ballpark. And while I am sure that the players appreciate this sort of unequivocal support, it gives the owners no incentive to improve the team.

When it comes to criticizing and expecting a lot from the Pirates, the Steelers might be partly to blame. We trust that the Steelers are always trying to improve. We believe them when they tell us that the new safety is a better deal than Chris Hope, because more often than not, the Steelers have delivered. When we apply the same sort of faith to the Pirates, they rob us blind. How could we have been so stupid to think that Casey, Burnitz, and Randa would help at all? Are we really that gullible, that easily duped?

This is all that you need to know about the Pirates: They turn a profit.

But pro sports teams are not just moneymaking machines. They are playthings for very rich men who want to show off their wealth. In fact, most teams lose money; that’s why so many of them get sold every year. While making a profit might seem like good business sense, consider this: the Pirates, a team valued at probably $200 million, probably had a profit of $5 million last year. If the Pirates were a unit of any large corporation, they would be considered a financial underperformer, and would have a For Sale sign hanging on the front door. (To put it another way, trying to turn a profit with a sports team is like making money by selling defective toys to little kids. You might make your money, but either way, you’re a huge jerk.)

So there you have it. We expect nothing from the Pirates except the occasional fun night out, and that’s what we get. As long as the team keeps making money, which will happen as long as we keep filling PNC Park, the Pirates will keep losing.

So what can we do? If you’re so inclined, vote with your wallet, and don’t support the Pirates. If enough of us stop showing up to PNC Park, the team might get sold to an owner who eschews profit in favor of wins and publicity.

----Dr. Burgher

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