I Had To, A Quick Look at the Steelers BRUTAL 2008 Schedule

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 1:29 PM EST in News Comment 35 comments

I've been depressed the past several days. I love the offseason. It's great for the site, great for the team that's looking to tweak its makeup. But the reality of no more actual games until next September has paralyzed me a bit recently.

To combat that, I took a gander at our 2008 schedule, you know, just to have something other than what offensive linemen might be the best available on the board when we draft in the 1st round this April.

What I saw was downright scary:

Home Opponents: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, San Diego Chargers, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants

Away Opponents: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, Washington Redskins.

That was not a typo. Road games against the #1, #7, and #4 seeds from this year's stacked AFC. And a road game at the NFCs #6 seed, plus an Eagles team that can always be dangerous. That's not even mentioning our road games against our divisional foes.

We are a fantastic team at home, but look at all those tests. The NFC's Super Bowl representative, the NFCs #1 regular season team, the AFCs #2 and 2006 SB Champs, and the freaking Chargers.

Friends, we could be a good football team and only win 8 games next year. It's going to be one hell of a ride. A whole new wave of Tomlin doubters is going to be born if we get out of the gates slowly. Were you disappointed by the results of this year? Just warning you now, that Divisional Crown we're wearing this year may look pretty good come January. I sure hope not, and it's still very possible we improve enough in the right areas to suddenly be a very complete squad capable of competing for a SB. We'll see.

There, I feel better.

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Remember One Thing

As the Steelers change,....all the teams you mentioned will also change. What looks like a tough team today might look like a cupcake tommorow. Thats how the league is today.

For one,...the Redskins will probably suck next year,...they don't even have a coaching staff yet and its almost Feb.

by coldsteel on Jan 29, 2008 1:35 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

well

That's true and a good point.

But really, think about those teams. Is SD going to be any worse? Are the Colts going to be mediocre? Pats? Jags? Titans? No, no, no, no and no. The only team that might regress is TN, and that's doubtful when you consider they have gobs of money to spend in FA this year.

The Texans are improving. As are the Browns. We will be running the full gamut of tough teams in the AFC from the #1 seed down to about the #8. Not meddling teams at all on our AFC slate.

In the NFC, the Cowboys will still be a test, though they're hardly unbeatable. Same goes for the Giants, Skins and the Eagles.

You're right it changes from year to year, and it's possible that one of these teams may have some mysterious collapse, but when you look up and down the rosters of who we've got, man, it's scary.

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 1:43 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

You're right,...but

I tend to think that after a good year, more NFL teams tend to regress than not.

Lets break it down. In 2006, the NFC Division winners were:

Chicago Bears
New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia Eagles
Seattle Seahawks

Of the 4 division winners, 3 of them regressed badly, and the 4th one was in the weakest division and not very impressive.

Lets look at the AFC in 06':

New England Patriots
Baltimore Ravens
San Diego Chargers
Indianapolis Colts

The Pats and Colts are really the only 2 division winner that built on a strong season to become even better. Baltimore regressed at warp speed, and the Chargers obviously regressed in the regular season but performed well in the playoffs.

So,...of the 8 NFL division champions last year, 6 of them regressed, with only 2 improving. So I don't think its hard to imagine MANY of the teams we face next year taking steps backwards. I wouldn't bank on it,....but I do expect our schedule to look easier once the season kicks off.

by coldsteel on Jan 29, 2008 2:04 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

good stuff

Nice reminder about the Bears and Saints. Other than the Pats, Colts, and Chargers, I'll conceed that it could look a lot less daunting by the time the actual games are played.

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 2:05 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

This might sound crazy but

Even the Pats will look a lot less intimidating next year when they lose Randy Moss. They'll still be good though. I think the Colts will be solid, especially with Dungy coming back. The Chargers could go either way. I absolutely would not be surprised if they regressed. Their "stars" are not nearly as stable as the Pats and Colts stars. Manning, Brady, Welker, Wayne are the definition of reliabilty. Tomlinson, RIvers, Merriman? Not so much.

by coldsteel on Jan 29, 2008 2:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

pats

Sure they may not be quite as good, but there's only one way for them to go, no?

Chargers are too talented I contend. Their front 7 is too good and young to regress. Their secondary is too solid as well. LT and Gates will still get theirs. We'll see how Rivers does. Regardelss of how their team develops collectively, they'll still have enough horses to give us a tough game most likely.

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 2:45 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Yes I agree

The Pats will regress for the sheer reason that they can't get any better than they were this year.

And on second thought, the Chargers could be very strong as well. Especially since they're so young as you pointed out. THe Colts have some old horses, so who knows we might see some slippage from them. But all in all, i agree those 3 will be challenging.

The Cowboys, Redskins, and Giants don't scare me. I'm so glad we play the Jags,....they own us at Heinz for some reason,...the only balm for that is beating them on their own turf.

by coldsteel on Jan 29, 2008 3:55 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

what

who says moss is leaving? NE

* till next time wave those towels proud

by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on Jan 29, 2008 3:48 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Moss

He's a free agent at the end of the year. Most people think the Patriots won't pay him what he 'might' want. Thats assuming of course he wouldnt be willing to take less than market value to stay with the Pats and be relevant on a SB contending team.

We'll see what Moss is more interested in soon enough: dollars or Ws.

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 3:49 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Moss

I may be in the minority here but I bet Moss would take far less money to stay with the Pats. He's proven throughout his career that he won't give even minimal effort unless he interested and motivated and he certainly seemed that way this year. Plus he's to the age now where he's made his money and now he just needs to accumulate stats and cement his place in history (at least thats how I would think). Of course as a Steelers fan, I'd love to see him bolt to San Fra or Atlanta for a huge chunk of change, I just don't see it happening though.

"You know who I want? William Wallace. That's who I'm looking for" - Bengals defensive line coach when asked who he was looking for in the draft

by cgolden on Jan 29, 2008 3:58 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I knew

He was a FA. Just that it never crossed my mind that he wouldnt be a pat next year. Due to the fact that he went after the money before and it didnt work out and didnt win. Thus at this point of his career it may be best to stay with Brady. Because if hes going to go to the hall of fame with hall of fame numbers its going to be Brady throwing the ball to him

* till next time wave those towels proud

by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on Jan 29, 2008 4:23 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Another thing to remember

Every other AFC North team has to play the AFC East and NFC East as well and Cleveland won't get the benefit of a 4th place schedule in 2008 and they'll have upstart BUF and DEN in place of NE and SD.

The AFC North champ in '08 (whoever it is) should be 'battle tested' for the playoffs.

"You know who I want? William Wallace. That's who I'm looking for" - Bengals defensive line coach when asked who he was looking for in the draft

by cgolden on Jan 29, 2008 1:46 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

this is also true

Good pt. I'd still rather have DEN and 'upstart' BUF than the robotic Pats and the Chargers though :)

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 1:48 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

very true

They were good enough to get a 1-1 split against DEN and BUF in '07 and I'd be ok with the same split against NE and SD in '08.

"You know who I want? William Wallace. That's who I'm looking for" - Bengals defensive line coach when asked who he was looking for in the draft

by cgolden on Jan 29, 2008 1:59 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

So would I

But, for all but two games, we have the exact same schedule as the rest of our division.

And, while the other AFC North teams don't have to play the Pats and Chargers, they have two nasty games that we do not...

They have the play the Steelers twice!

It doesn't matter if we're 8-8, we just have to win the division.

"If I could start my life all over again, I would be a professional football player, and you damn well better believe I would be a Pittsburgh Steeler." Lambert

by steelhammer on Jan 29, 2008 10:46 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Toughest Schedule. . . in NFL History?

Think about it, technically you cannot get a tougher schedule than the Steelers have next season. They play EVERY SINGLE playoff team from this year's AFC and 3 playoff teams from the NFC (the most you can have from one division). Thats 8 playoff teams. . .you cannot have more than that. Impossible. Not to mention the 6 division rival games, never an easy task no matter how bad the bungles are. Thats really 14 games in doubt. What are the "sure wins?" Houston at home? I'd never think of Philly on the road as a sure win, no matter how bad they were the year before. Going to be an interesting year for a team looking to get young.

We Dey

by loyal and true on Jan 29, 2008 1:59 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

correct sir

You're correct now that I think about it. Crazy. People have said the Cowboys and Skins may not be as good. Maybe so, maybe not. Regardless, neither is going to be a terrrible football team next year. Both will be very tough games.

by Blitzburgh on Jan 29, 2008 2:02 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

toughest? -- maybe so

Opponents winning percentage: 59.8% (153-103) -- and that's greatly helped out by a divisional record of 44-52

Just think about the fact that the other 10 games is against teams with a combined record of 109-51 (68.1%)

"You know who I want? William Wallace. That's who I'm looking for" - Bengals defensive line coach when asked who he was looking for in the draft

by cgolden on Jan 29, 2008 2:10 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

no such thing

as a "sure wins" in the NFL anymore. I mean that, as bad as Miami is they could potentially turn it around next year. That is just another reason why i love NFL, rather than NCAA (not that i dont watch ncaa), to many sure wins in the NCAA specifically my team the Ohio state buckeyes (which im not proud of anymore, so if anyone wants to find me a new fav. college team im all ears lol)

* till next time wave those towels proud

by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on Jan 29, 2008 4:30 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Not the toughest

The toughest would be if the Steelers hadn't made the playoffs. Then we could conceivably play nine playoff teams.

by RickVa on Jan 29, 2008 4:37 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

ok second toughest lol

either way, its tough as balls if i can say that on here

* till next time wave those towels proud

by LiveinDCbutsteelerfanbyheart on Jan 29, 2008 4:38 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Never mind

If we hadn't won the division we wouldn't have a first place schedule. My mistake.

by RickVa on Jan 29, 2008 4:40 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

We get screwed by the match games

14 of the 16 opponents are common within the division. For the most part, someone still has to win the division so it won't matter what record until playoff seeding. The other two games are match games and we get the screws next year. We get the Patriots who are night and day above the rest, while the Browns, who tied us at 10-6, get the Bills. Then we get San Diego while the Browns get Denver. Both Cincy and Baltimore get terrible teams in both divisions. We would have done much better with any other two "match" divisions except AFC East and AFC West...But, oh, well...

by maryrose on Jan 29, 2008 5:02 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

right on

The bottom line though is that if they can go 7-1 in the division again they'll be in the tourney again next year.

"You know who I want? William Wallace. That's who I'm looking for" - Bengals defensive line coach when asked who he was looking for in the draft

by cgolden on Jan 29, 2008 5:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Ouch.

AFC South and NFC East? This is going to be an interesting season.

There's one upside to this, I guess; we're going to be seeing a lot of good football next year.

by HinesField on Jan 29, 2008 5:43 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

You could not have constructed a worse schedule

Both the AFC South and NFC East sent three teams to the playoffs, and after those teams are gone, what better division champion match games than the Patriots and Chargers.

Or, if you like playing the best and have season tickets and subscribe to the Mike Tomlin School of wanting the highest challenge, then you might say you could not have constructed a BETTER schedule! Hmmm.

by maryrose on Jan 29, 2008 7:28 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

BRUTAL

I agree Blitz. It's gonna be brutal. Things change every year but teams like the Pats*, Cowboys, Colts, Jags, Titans, Giants and the Central foes will all be in the hunt.
The organization better load up in the draft with some big strong young guys in the trenches. This years draft will be extremely important towards making a playoff run in 08.

When You Run The Ball Good Things Happen

by 5020 on Jan 29, 2008 7:55 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Love the schedule

Great games, likely a lot of national TV exposure. I look at our home schedule and see eight win-able games. If we play well at home and go 5-1 in the division, we're probably going to win the North. The two easier games that our division opponents get, they will have to win just to catch up.

The reference to Mike Tomlin probably loving the schedule is probably dead-on too. How can you not want to play great teams? It sure beats having to watch us gag on easy teams like the Jets, Broncos and Cardinals.

by steeler lifer on Jan 30, 2008 10:58 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Gotta agree on National TV exposure.

I can probably ditch my NFL Sunday ticket next year. I wouldn't be surprised if at least 10 of these games make national TV.

by HinesField on Jan 30, 2008 1:29 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

schedule

This is an absolutely brutal schedule, but we share most of it with our division. The Browns have to play the Bills and Broncos - easier than our games, but not that easy - and the Ravens and Bengals won't be too great (Balt doesn't have a QB and their defense is older, Cinci doesn't have a defense or running game). Many times after having a year like the Browns did, a team will have an inconsistent/bad year (see New Orleans). Against the schedule, the divison could land in our laps at 9-7.

Our schedule was so easy last year that we got away with being unprepared. We really only played 2 good teams. I don't have a doubt that we have the talent to go 12-4 next year, but we can't take weeks off like last year, and injuries will be key. Anyway, I'd rather play a tough schedule and barely make it into the playoffs than underachieve against an easy schedule and lose in the first round. In my mind, it's a make or break year for our coaching staff.

by BadMaafala on Jan 30, 2008 10:58 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

Less worried about nfc

I may be biased, but it seems the NFC is incredibly changable... The AFC's powerhouses have been established for the last few years. You know who's gonna be good and who's not. The NFC on the other hand... Anyone could end up making the playoffs just by a fluke year. The AFC East scares me... I'm actually more worried by the Texans than the Titans though... I'll believe in VY when he can throw the ball more accurately than my niece... If the giants lose the superbowl, crappy but likely, then they'll have the hangover. Dallas doesn't worry me too much, and as was pointed out the Redskins are much in flux with all new coaching staff. Who can say what the Eagles will look like.

That said I like our chances against the AFC North again next year. I think our team is the only one that's still getting better in the division. I know you can point at the Brownies but I'll believe that when they can do it again. My guess is with enough film teams will break down Derek Anderson. The Ravens are old and have no QB and cinci, well no need to explain.

by Chicago Steeler on Jan 30, 2008 11:21 AM EST reply actions 0 recs

also not as concerned with who we have at home

We split with SD in 2005 and 2006, both in SD and we finally get them at home

Also would not be too terribly frightened of Dallas, Washington, and Houston at Heinz Field

So we could repeat 10-6 if we take all 6 games against the AFC North and grab those 4 home games

Not at all optimistic about having to play at NE. Hopefully we get that one week 1 or 2 to get it over with. Jax has had our number and I think that is a loss, especially if we let them jump on us like this season.

Iffy on Indy at home and on the road against NYG, Philly, and Tenn. Got to be a better road team this year

by nerves of steel on Jan 30, 2008 2:46 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

I wouldn't count on sweeping the division

As I've heard a few times...Very tough to do. This year we only lost one game that we didn't try to win, but those type years are very rare. Really, 4-2 in the division is a reasonable hope. If you assume more than that you might be overestimating us or underestimating our opponents.

by maryrose on Jan 30, 2008 3:16 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

you could be right

Cleveland is the team that will be the pre-season flavor of the AFC North, but we have not lost to them since 02 or 03. I think we could take both sets against Bengals and Ravens

by nerves of steel on Jan 30, 2008 3:42 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs