2024 Pittsburgh Steelers Season Preview, Offseason Analysis, and Win Total Prediction
The Pittsburgh Steelers organization has been the model of stability for the last 50 years. You know the story; six Super Bowl titles, only three head coaches in the history of the franchise, a long list of Hall of Famers, a fan base that stretches from coast to coast, as Mike Tomlin says, “The standard is the standard.”
The “standard” that Steelers fans have witnessed recently has been a far cry from the championship teams of the past, and has focused more on being average than being great.
However, after the offseason that the Steelers put together, it appears that the “standard” is evolving and the emphasis on winning has returned to the Steel City.
But my focus isn’t so much on the Steelers chances of making a Super Bowl run. I am looking at the Steelers win total and whether or not they will continue their stretch of non-losing seasons.
Odds are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
Pittsburgh Steelers 2024 Schedule
Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 8, at Atlanta Falcons
Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 15, at Denver Broncos
Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 22, vs. Los Angeles Chargers
Week 4: Sunday, Sept. 29, at Indianapolis Colts
Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 6, vs. Dallas Cowboys (SNF)
Week 6: Sunday, Oct. 13, at Las Vegas Raiders
Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 20, vs. New York Jets (SNF)
Week 8: Monday, Oct. 28, vs. New York Giants
Week 9: Bye Week
Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 10, at Washington Commanders
Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 17, vs. Baltimore Ravens
Week 12: Thursday, Nov. 21, at Cleveland Browns
Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 1, at Cincinnati Bengals
Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 8, vs. Cleveland Browns
Week 15: Sunday, Dec. 15, at Philadelphia Eagles
Week 16: Saturday, Dec. 21, at Baltimore Ravens
Week 17: Wednesday, Dec. 25, vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Week 18: Date/Time TBD, vs. Cincinnati Bengals
The Steelers have arguably the toughest schedule in the NFL this season and they have many new faces tasked with navigating this gauntlet.
Last season’s quarterback room of Kenny Pickett, Mitchell Trubisky and Mason Rudolph has been replaced by Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. While the replacement for embattled offensive coordinator Matt Canada, is the former embattled head coach of the Atlanta Falcons Arthur Smith.
The Arthur Smith hire drew a ton of criticism for how poor the Falcons offense performed during his tenure, and for his almost willingness to not put the ball in the hands of his best players.
My view on the Arthur Smith hire is that there are some coaches that are just meant to be coordinators, and while he was the offensive coordinator in Tennessee, the Titans had a top 10 scoring offense in 2019, and then had a top five scoring offense in 2020.
It is my opinion that as a collective unit, this Steelers roster possesses more offensive talent for Smith to utilize than there was during his time in Tennessee.
The lack of depth at wide receiver is concerning however; George Pickens is the official number one target following Diontae Johnson’s trade to Carolina, but there are no defined alternative options at receiver for Russell Wilson to throw to.
The Steelers did draft Roman Wilson out of Michigan, but the rest of the rotation is comprised of Van Jefferson, Scotty Miller, and speedsters Calvin Austin III and Quez Watkins.
Pat Freiermuth is a legitimate option at tight end when healthy, but the development at the wide receiver position will be vital to the Steelers offense.
There is the two-headed monster in the backfield with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren. Warren emerged as an alternative to the bruising style of running that Harris is known for and also proved his ability to be a reliable pass catcher.
I am most interested in watching how Harris performs in an Arthur Smith offense, particularly after the Steelers declined his fifth-year option.
The defense is loaded with talent at every level; Cameron Heyward is the anchor on the defensive line, while T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith control the edge rush, and Joey Porter Jr. and Minkah Fitzpatrick patrol the defensive backfield.
The defense has several new faces with Patrick Queen, DeShon Elliot, and Donte Jackson all expected enter the starting lineup and third-round pick Payton Wilson is going to see significant playing time at linebacker, and many NFL analysts believe he was the best linebacker in the draft.
Prediction: Steelers O 8.5 wins
As previously mentioned, the Steelers schedule is brutal to say the least, but that isn’t scaring me into fading them this season. I believe that the Steelers can enter their bye week with at least a 5-2 record, possibly even 6-1, with the two most concerning matchups in my opinion being the road trip to Denver and the matchup with the Jets.
Coming out of the bye week the Steelers must, and I mean must beat Washington. If they lose a matchup against a rookie quarterback after having an extra week to prepare, it puts them in a tough spot.
As for the rest of the schedule; what many people missed last season is that Pittsburgh went 5-1 against their division opponents, 5-1 with that disaster of an offense, and after the additions made in the offseason, going anything less than 4-2 would be a disappointment in my eyes.
The matchup on Christmas against the Chiefs will be a loss. That will be both team’s third game in 10 days, which is a discussion all on it’s own, but the Steelers will be coming off of road games against Philadelphia and Baltimore entering the showdown with the Chiefs, which is why it is extra important for the Steelers to do well in the division and win the games they will be favored in this season.
It isn’t going to be easy, and for us bettors it will certainly be sweaty, but whether it’s the power of the Terrible Towel or some Mike Tomlin voodoo magic tricks, the Steelers always find a way to not have a losing season, which is all we need to cash this win total.
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.