Pittsbugh Steelers.
2015 Season Win Total - 8.5
Year In Review: The Pittsburgh Steelers finished with 11 wins last year. They also made the postseason, but came up short in the wildcard round of the playoffs. Steelers finished off the season on a strong note winning 4 straight games. Big Ben had a big passing year again and LeVeon Bell looks to be in the best form in years..Will Pittsburgh make another push at the playoffs in 2015?
--- 2015 Key Additions:
RB - DeAngelo Williams
QB - Tajh Boyd
CB - Doran Grant
WR - Sammie Coates
(Overview) --- The Steelers got help this year in a few spots they needed to fill..I'm very worried about the talent that has left and the players they have brought in. I can't see any of the players they picked up being a big part of this team having success this year.
--- 2015 Key Departures:
D-Cord - **** LeBeau
WR - Lance Moore
LB - Jason Worilds
S - Troy Polamalu
CB - Ike Taylor
CB - Brice McCain
DE - Brett Keisel
(Overview) --- It's going to be tough to replace the losses on and off the field..I can see these departures really hurting the locker room this year...The caliber of veteran losses is scary..The defense for Pitt will be a real liability this year. I can't see anyone stepping in right now for Lebeau and having success with the unit they have for this year.
__________________________________________________________________
2015 Pitssburgh Steelers - Schedule
Home:
REGULAR
1 SEP 10 8:30PMEDT ' AT PATRIOTS
2 SEP 20 1:00PMEDT ) 49ERS
3 SEP 27 1:00PMEDT * AT RAMS
4 OCT 1 8:25PMEDT * , RAVENS
5 OCT 12 8:30PMEDT + AT CHARGERS
6 OCT 18 1:00PMEDT ) CARDINALS
7 OCT 25 1:00PMEDT * AT CHIEFS
8 NOV 1 1:00PMEST * BENGALS
9 NOV 8 1:00PMEST * RAIDERS
10 NOV 15 1:00PMEST * BROWNS
12 NOV 29 4:25PMEST * AT SEAHAWKS
13 DEC 6 8:30PMEST ' COLTS
14 DEC 13 1:00PMEST * AT BENGALS
15 DEC 20 4:25PMEST * BRONCOS
16 DEC 27 8:30PMEST ' AT RAVENS
17 JAN 3 1:00PMEST * AT BROWNS
(Overview)
The schedule looks to be a bit tough this year...It's hard to say the Steelers have more than 2 wins on the road that are guaranteed...They easiest road game they have all year is in fact week 17 @ Cleveland...The home schedule is a bit more favorable, but not by much...Having teams like SF, Indy, Den, AZ looks to be tough as well..They get Oakland going into the bye which helps them. The first visit with Cinn is in fact the Bengals coming out of the bye week in Pitt. They might get the benefit of opening the season without having to face Tom Brady. Other than a few miracles, this looks tough.
_________________________________________________________
The Offense :
--- Big Ben had a monster year in 2014..He finished T-1st for yards overall with 4,952...He also had 33 Td's and only 9 Int's..His rating was 103.3, and his avg ypg was 310. Stat wise i just don't see a duplicate of last season..Big Ben has the talent, but another year and i still see no major improvements on offense has me worried again. A few key injuires to this Pitt offense and it could be big trouble for the Steelers.
--- Brown had a monster year as well..he was Big Bens goto target and he racked up 1600+ yards. With the Addition of DeAngelo Willimas to this roster gives some depth, but also will spell LeVeon Bell. Heath Miller is a durable TE, but i worry about how much Miller has left in the tank entering his 11th season. Weaton is a nice, but i'm not sold on his hands one bit. I hate when a QB and WR get so in tune with each other and become one dimensional to each other..This will be the case this year with Big Ben and Brown with Bell sitting out for 3 games to run the ball.
(Area Of Concern) --- Defense
This may in fact be the worst Steelers unit on defense in a very very long time..Way to many veterans leaving this team with no real solid backups. I can see this Steelers defense being at the bottom of the league this year without a doubt. LeBeau leaving will hurt this team and i think they stand a chance of finishing in the bottom 5 in defense.
Draft: --- I like what the Steelers did in the draft actually..They do have some spots that needed attention that they filled..Problem is it's with young talent that's undeveloped at this level..It may be a few years before this draft class pans out for the Steelers..My gut says it won't for many reasons..Most in part because i doubt this Steelers defense can keep players around after the next two years are over.
2015 Season Wins (Prediction)
I hate to say it, but the rebuilding light is on for the Steelers. The sell sign is on for the Steelers as well..I'm not buying this team winning 9 games this year. In fact i believe they will struggle to get to 7 wins. Big Ben is a great QB and Brown is great on the outside..LeVeon Bell will be out for the first three games and that is no help at all. The veteran losses will hurt them for sure and Worilds leaving leaves a big gap to fill. I see no true leader for this Steelers defense right now. Shazier and Timmons are good players, but i'm just not sold..The schedule looks to be a bit tougher than it looks..Most may think 9 wins is going to happen just because it's Pittsburgh..I'm not convinced at all, and i think the Steelers finish at the bottom of the league this year. They will be looking to rebuild in the near future..5 or 6 wins is not out of the question. I think i'm being generous giving them 7 wins total for the year. I'm sure i'll catch some flack for this prediction, but all i got say now so i don't hafta say it later on is...I told ya so.
(Pittsburgh Steelers) Total 8.5 = UNDER