Tuesday, August 18, 2009

32 Teams in 30-some Days: The Pittsburgh Steelers


Aside from one little snafu the Steelers had a pretty solid offseason. They only lost two regulars, linebacker Larry Foote (who the Steerls wanted to get rid of) and 3rd receiver Nate Washington (who wasn't exactly a key piece of the puzzle). So the team that won the Super Bowl last season returns essentially unchanged.

Then why am I so skeptical about the Steelers this year?

To be honest, I'm not sure. It seems like this team is due for a significant injury (even though both their running backs were hurt during last season). With their shaky offensive line it feels like Roethlisberger will be down for an extended period of time. And if that happens, the team could be in trouble - even though Charlie Batch is a capable backup. Who knows, Dennis Dixon might even get a chance to show what he can do if Big Ben goes down.

The Steelers stifling defence returns pretty much unchanged - I think they lost a cornerback, but can you name one Steelers' cornerback? The defence will probably be fine.

Barring any major injuries the Steelers should take the AFC North but they'll get a strong challenge from Baltimore this season - plus they'll have an improved Cincinnati team to deal with. I think a Super Bowl repeat will be very tough but being that this is essentially the same Steelers team that won last year - why not?

Yikes, could that preview been a little more wishy-washy? How about this... the Steelers will win their division, win a playoff game but not win the Super Bowl. There.

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