Pittsburgh Steelers.

[Blue_true]

My opinion on this team. The Roethlisberger era is over. Big Ben has never been the type to win with average or just above average players surrounding him, unlike Brady. To make matters worse, the Baltimore Ravens, in the Steelers grouping seem to have found young top players on both offense and defense, I expect the young Ravens to get better this year.

The Steelers signed Big Ben to a massive extension, leaving little to no money for signing other top players. Recent history has been that when teams signed quarterbacks to big contracts the team fell apart (i.e., Ryan in Atlanta, the Seattle QB, the Panthers QB, the Lions QB, the former Ravens QB, the former Dolphins QB, ect).

I think the Steelers will be bad this coming season. The coach will get fired because the coach takes the blame. Ben may retire after this coming season, once he sees that the well around him is dry. The Steelers will likely start years of rebuilding that goes well into the next decade.

[kozar]

1. all I can say is,,

Go Hawks!! we are 12's here... Lets play another SB? lol

good luck this year,,

Koz

[Blue_true]

3. You actually think that QB can lead them to the Super Bowl with

largely untested backups? The guy is not Tom Brady, who twice led weak teams to the AFC Championship Game and once all the way (2011) to the Super Bowl.

[kozar]

6. I dont think

I just believe in my team and hope,, they have surprised me before in the last 30 years I followed them. just like you beileve in yours,,,good luck this season,,hoping we can exchange notes again in February before THE GAME

[Blue_true]

9. I see where you are coming from, no issues with what you wrote.

Maybe the Dolphins can return to their glory years over the next three years or so. I don't expect them getting past Brady though, he has their number when the game really counts, like win or go home.

[democratisphere]

2. Never know until the season starts. Injuries can change a teams success quickly.

Let's Go Buffalo Bills!

[Blue_true]

4. Teams like the Patriots (actually the only team that does) overcome injuries,

except maybe Brady. There is no other team in football that has shown that ability, and certainly not the Steelers.

[Iggo]

5. The thing is, they had it covered and they blew it.

Their two best players couldn't wait to be gone.

One because they low-balled him and made it clear they were going to run him into the ground before they had to pay him.

The other, well...he's fucking nuts. He was already a headache and would've continued to be a headache. But he's a top-tier WR and he could run under anything Roethlisberger threw.

They decided to ride with the guy who's been threatening to retire every off-season.

You get what you pay for, and they paid for a very-soon-to-be broken down QB.

[Delarage]

10. The Steelers offered him more than the Jets

He just got greedy and over-estimated his market value...and underestimated his OL.

I believe the Steelers will be BETTER this year b/c, as Tomlin said, a team does better with "volunteers not hostages."

Conner had more long runs than Bell, b/c when a hole opened, he hit it (instead of dancing around). He's not as good as a receiver, but that's why the team has WRs and Jaylen Samuels, who got 170 yards against the Patriots.

I'm all for the Patriot model---not diva-driven.

[RockRaven]

7. The one thing I like about the Steelers directly correlates with the one thing I don't...

I like that the Steelers don't jump onto the coaching carousel every five minutes like so many other teams...

That said, I think they've stuck with this QB too long, because the cliff is looming and all the eggs are in a basket hurtling towards it...

[Blue_true]

8. The Steelers have a history of staying with coaches and keepin their star players

well past their prime.

[DeminPennswoods]

11. BR placed on IR, done for season

and probably his career. Not a big BR fan, but he did give Steeler fans lots to cheer about especially in the first half of his career. The past few years, BR hasn't been the same qb he was when he was younger. He wanted the offense he wanted and pretty much ignored establishing a running game or any semblance of a ball-control offense.

Now we are in the Mason Rudolph era.

It's ironic that BR's career ended much the same was as Bradshaw's with an elbow injury although Bradshaw blew out his arm in the last game of the season where a win meant they made the playoffs.

[JonLP24]

12. The thing about the Patriots is they play in the AFC East so if you can clinch the division you are

Guranteed one home game in the playoffs. I doubt New England would win as much if they played in the AFC North. Seattle had to deal with really good Cardinals & 49ers teams. Now the Rams are on top.

[Blue_true]

13. The Patriots would have 9 Super Bowl wins if 3 plays had not gone against them.

Wouldn't it be reasonable to conclude that anywhere they played, they would have figured out a way? Except for the Ravens, they have dominated AFC North teams in both the regular and postseason (the Ravens beat them in an AFC Championship Game in Foxborough). I would love to see the Dolphins become routinely competitive with the Patriots, but I don't see that happening in the Belichick/Brady era.

[JonLP24]

14. They had a lot of luck go their way starting with the tuck rule

The Seattle game there was an interception at the goal line but there was lucky catch by Seattle earlier in the drive. The Falcons Super Bowl had a lucky catch by Edelman and a backup running back promptly fumbled in New England territory during the comeback.

I do think the NFL has mostly inept GMs while Belichick takes advantage of it like Antonio Brown or Randy Moss. Traded for a shutdown corner with Buffalo. There are so many examples of this. Acquiring Moss for low round draft picks.