Pro Football Weekly had a chance to sit down recently with Jamie Dukes, a former NFL center and gregarious analyst for NFL Network. Dukes has become an outspoken figure in the fight against obesity since having gastric banding surgery with the Realize Band. He’s also quite outspoken when it comes to his opinions on football, and had the time to give us his impression of the Steelers’ offensive line, his Super Bowl prediction and a little more about the surgery that might have saved his life.

PFW: What were your impressions of Week One? Anything stand out in your mind? 

Dukes: Well, the Pittsburgh Steelers keep jumping out to me. When you look at the championship-caliber teams and their (offensive) line situation and how they win games is just kind of amazing to me. I think they defy most of the odds when you talk about winning games.

PFW: Well when you look at Ben Roethlisberger, he doesn’t put up big numbers, but he finds ways to win games all the time.

Dukes: But they have no rhythm in their offense whatsoever. Deion (Sanders) and I were talking about this the other day. They have no rhythm in their passing game whatsoever, which is just so unusual. We know about the offensive line situation — I’m telling you, the worst offensive line to ever win a Super Bowl. I mean, the worst. Ben tries to take a little pressure off his offensive line as far as he holds the ball long, and yeah he does to a certain extent, but those guys can’t block … The Steelers, they’re missing blocks, they’ve got guys running free. They break down in every area of protection.

PFW: So do you think that’s an indictment of the coach?

Dukes: No, well, I don’t know. I don’t know who it’s an indictment of, but who am I to indict the Super Bowl champs is my point. “Oh, you think you know so much Dukes, we’re the Super Bowl champs. Next question.” That’s the intriguing thing. As much as you think you know about this game, (it’s full of surprises). 

PFW: What about a Super Bowl prediction?

Dukes: It’s all changing, man. I’m going to go with the Patriots in the AFC and I’m still leaning Eagles, even though the Eagles right now are just a bunch of pieces. I mean, they played well the other day, but I don’t think they’re a team yet.

PFW: Even with McNabb’s injury?

Dukes: Well, then there’s that. But I don’t think the rib injury will be a long-term situation.

PFW: Why don’t you tell me a little more about your situation.

Dukes: My average playing weight was around 290 pounds, 295. When I retired, incrementally over a ten-year period, I was probably one biscuit away from 400 pounds. The last time I actually weighed in, it was 385 that I saw, but that was before going to Hawaii and the Pro Bowl and Mai Tais and all that other stuff. Yeah, I don’t have any doubt that on that week, I was probably closer to four bills.

PFW: So what set this whole thing in motion? Was it the deaths (of your former teammates) or was it something else?

Dukes: It was a combination of things. I had been working out but it was just about nothing more than just working. And then the last one that probably kicked it over the top was the loss of Mel Agee … on Father’s Day weekend.

PFW: That’s got to be significant for you. You’ve got kids, right?

Dukes: Yeah, and that’s the thing. You know, all the guys basically left family members. The biggest thing I’ve learned throughout this whole process is that obesity is like the center spoke for all these other issues. From cancer to Type II Diabetes, high blood pressure, fatalities associated with sleep apnea, and it’s obesity that sits there as the center spoke — the common denominator — with a lot of these issues. As I began to get more informed, it was really just kind of impressed upon me to get out there and start getting the word out. Not just to former players, but I think the obesity community needs a champion who’s not afraid to talk about the steps that they went through to get where they are.

PFW: What exactly is the Realize Band?

Dukes: A (silicone) band that they place around the top of the stomach. Imagine — your stomach is the size of a football. If you look at the very top, there’s a smaller area right at the top of the upper stomach there. The band sits at the top of the stomach, so effectively, it shrinks the stomach from the size of a football to the size of a golf ball, literally.