The 2018 Pittsburgh Steelers missed the playoffs and ended up losing two of their three best offensive weapons, as Le’Veon Bell is now a member of the New York Jets, and Antonio Brown is now playing in Oakland, leaving just quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Part of missing the playoffs resulted from losing two of their first four — and tying one too. They followed up that tie with the Browns in the opener with a five-point loss in Kansas City. They beat Tampa Bay on the road but then lost to Baltimore (this was before the Lamar Jackson era began). However, a six-game winning streak followed, with a 24-point thumping of Atlanta, followed by a win in Cincinnati, revenge against both Cleveland Baltimore, a demolition of Carolina and a win in Jacksonville. However, a three-game skid ensued, including a hideous three-point loss in Oakland, and even a win over New England was not enough to stop the damage. The sports betting books have the Steelers following up their 9-6-1 campaign with a win/loss total of nine. We’ll look at the Steelers’ off-season moves and then take a look at their 2019 slate of opponents.
Pittsburgh Steelers 2019 Win/Loss Total Odds & Prediction
Drafting Devin Bush at the #10 pick was a strong statement by the Steelers that defense would come first. The Steelers have not had a defensive leader since linebacker Ryan Shazier went down with a spinal injury near the end of the 2017 campaign, and we saw the effects of that in the playoffs, when the Steelers scored almost 50 points against Jacksonville at home but lost to a Jaguars offense led by Blake Bortles. Bush comes from Michigan and has the talent and the personality to become a defensive powerhouse. The Steelers also inked linebacker Mark Barron from the Los Angeles Rams and cornerback Steven Nelson from the Kansas City Chiefs in free agency. Nelson had four picks in 2018. These additions should lead to improvements from the 27th-ranked defense from a year ago. Pittsburgh lost tight end Jesse James to a four-year deal with the Detroit Lions. Their additions so far have included Donte Moncrief to replace Brown at wide receiver; the Steelers signed him to a two-year deal. They also drafted Diontae Johnson in the third round. The Toledo wide receiver has speed and hands, but it remains to be seen how much impact he will have early in his pro career, simply because of the jump from the MAC to the NFL. They also drafted tight end Zach Gentry out of Michigan in the fifth round. The rest of their seven picks were either defenders or offensive linemen. Can the Steelers revamp themselves on the defensive end? They will need to do so to contend for the postseason. Now, let’s look at that schedule….@missi_matthews sat down with Coach Butler to discuss OTAs, getting ready for 2019 and more. pic.twitter.com/jDXgTk6TZ0
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) June 5, 2019
- Week 1: at New England
- Week 2: Seattle
- Week 3: at San Francisco
- Week 4: Cincinnati (Monday)
- Week 5: Baltimore
- Week 6: at L.A. Chargers
- Week 7: BYE
- Week 8: Miami (Monday)
- Week 9: Indianapolis
- Week 10: L.A. Rams
- Week 11: at Cleveland (Thursday)
- Week 12: at Cincinnati
- Week 13: Cleveland
- Week 14: at Arizona
- Week 15: Buffalo
- Week 16: at N.Y. Jets
- Week 17: at Baltimore
