Let's see how the Pittsburgh Steelers fare against the rest of the NFL over the course of the past two regular seasons, Mike Tomlin's first two years as the head coach.
| Team | 2007 Record | 2008 Record | Total Record |
| New England | 16-0 | 8-5 | 24-5 |
| Indianapolis |
13-3 | 9-4 | 22-7 |
| Tennessee |
10-6 |
12-1 |
22-7 |
| New York (N) | 10-6 | 11-2 | 21-8 |
| Dallas | 13-3 | 8-5 | 21-8 |
| Pittsburgh | 10-6 | 10-3 | 20-9 |
| Tampa Bay | 9-7 | 9-3 | 18-10 |
| Green Bay | 13-3 | 5-8 | 18-11 |
| San Diego | 11-5 | 5-8 | 16-13 |
| AZ, CAR | MIN, WAS | also With | 16 |
This isn't supposed to be overly persuasive or anything. Reality is we've been about average when it comes to the top third of the league's teams. That puts us in about the top 15-20% for the league, but as Steelers fans, I can understand us wanting even more. Not to mention success in the playoffs. But I've always thought that too much emphasis is placed on that alone when judging overall success. Marty Schottenheimer comes to mind as someone who got a bum rapt due to playoff flameouts. Fact is though he's one of the greatest most consistent coaches in league history.
Anyway, there's no denying that the front office has some tough decisions to make this offseason. On the one hand, it may be easy to think things are going along just fine, and that no substantive moves need to be made personnel or coaching wise. But I think to take this team to the next level in terms of regular season competitiveness, we may need to, both along the line and at offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. Maybe even at running backs coach. Of all the banter here at BTSC, not a soul, myself included, has mentioned the absence of Dick Hoak, who we interviewed this year, as a factor in the retardation of the running game's development in recent years.
All that said, not bad! For all our problems and all our injuries...we remain one of the league's most competitive franchises, even as we break in a new coaching regime and go to battle with a undermanned line.