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Recent history shows correlation between winless preseasons and lack of regular season success

The Wall Street Journal dug into the last 19 years of preseason records and found something troubling for the 2013 Pittsburgh Steelers.

By Neal Coolong
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Reports of the Steelers' preseason swoon have not been greatly exaggerated - yet.

A recent dip back into the statistical preseason by the Wall Street Journal shows failing to win a game in the preseason does not bode well for the regular season.

According to that publication, there have been 37 teams that finished without a win in the preseason since 1994. Nine of those 37 teams qualified for the playoffs in those seasons, and only three of them won a playoff game.

The Steelers and Atlanta Falcons both failed to win a preseason game. The Falcons are considered one of the front-runners to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl this year.

It also points out the Dolphins, Bills and Jets all lost their four preseason games last year and finished a combined 19-29. Perhaps these stats can stand up on their own, but it'd be more telling if teams winning one preseason game showed any propensity for winning seasons.

Or even if winning all of them shows anything over the same time period. The Steelers won three of four last year, and finished 8-8, missing the playoffs. They finished 0-4 in the preseason before the 2006 regular season, and finished 8-8, missing the playoffs.

Whether the Steelers are like the 2012 non-Patriots AFC East or not will begin to be determined Sept. 8 as the Steelers open the regular season at home against the Tennessee Titans.

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