The journey toward Super Bowl LII ended far too prematurely for the Pittsburgh Steelers, sending them into offseason mode before we were ready for it. But we are in it now, and are ready to move on, through the Combine, through free agency, through the draft, into OTAs, and beyond.
We have asked and answered a lot of questions over the years and will continue to do so, and at the moment, there seem to be a ton of questions that need answering. A surprise early exit in the postseason will do that to you though, especially when it happens in the way it did.
You can rest assured that we have the questions, and we will be monitoring developments all throughout the offseason process, all the way down to Latrobe. Pending free agents, possible veteran roster cuts, contract extensions, pre-draft visits, pro days, all of it will have its place when the time arises.
Question: Is there a Super Bowl matchup so bad that you wouldn’t watch it—and is this one it?
When it comes to Steelers fans, there are not many teams that they hate more than the New England Patriots or the Philadelphia Eagles. While many still put their division rivals, the Baltimore Ravens and the Cincinnati Bengals—the Cleveland Browns are too bad to care about—ahead of the aforementioned teams, there is usually at least a degree of respect involved.
Could this be a matchup so bad, particularly for fanbases such as Pittsburgh’s, that they might tune out from the biggest game of the year—and typically the most-watched television program of every year? There are plenty of people who don’t even particularly care about football who end up watching the Super Bowl.
But many, based on my Twitter feed and elsewhere, are having a hard time reconciling the idea of (another) Patriots-Eagles Super Bowl, knowing that both of them can’t lose. And this one comes with New England on the verge of tying the Steelers for the most Super Bowls of all time. And the Eagles don’t even have Carson Wentz, easily one of their most likable players.
I would expect that the responses to this will be mixed. There are some fans who are almost entirely about only their team. There are some fans who love the game, or even sports in general, that they will watch whatever is on no matter the context.
With the Steelers’ season having left such a bad taste in people’s mouths this year, however, and perhaps with people wondering how the playoffs might have gone differently if not for an overturned touchdown call that favored the Patriots against Pittsburgh, there may be a bit more tuning out than there normally would be.
Personally, I haven’t missed a Super Bowl since I’ve been conscious of what a Super Bowl is, and that’s not going to change. At least I can pull for the Patriots not winning their sixth Lombardi. It’s not like Tom Brady has a legacy that needs securing…
