The quirkiest part of a tough Pittsburgh Steelers is undoubtedly how late their AFC North race starts. The Steelers won’t face a divisional foe until Week 11, a team record for how late their divisional games begin. But the NFL maintains that wasn’t there intent. It’s just how the schedule broke.
In a zoom call with media members including ESPN’s Brooke Pryor, VP of Broadcast Planning Mike North compared it to a college basketball schedule.
Of course, in college basketball, the Kansas Jayhawks get an easier lead-in with their schedule, playing mid-majors to warm up against. The NFL isn’t as forgiving.
While the front half of the Steelers schedule looks “easy” compared to how it ends, there are no cakewalks. Playing three of the team’s first four games on the road is a challenge in itself, starting off with a road trip to an Atlanta Falcons team with an underrated roster and far better quarterback play than a season ago. The Steelers will travel to Denver in Week 2 where they historically haven’t had success before opening their home slate in Week 3 against a beefed-up Los Angeles Chargers team. They’ll hit the road in Week 4 to face the Indianapolis Colts, who are getting back QB Anthony Richardson.
Pittsburgh isn’t alone this year. The Chicago Bears have a similarly structured slate, not facing an NFC North opponent until Week 11 when they host the Green Bay Packers. But they have the third-easiest strength of schedule while the Steelers have the third-hardest. The Bears also open their season at home and play two of their first four at Soldier Field, advantages the Steelers won’t enjoy out of the gate.
At the end of the day, the schedule is talked about so much because there’s little else going on. And predicting what does and doesn’t look tough will change early into the year. Injuries, surprise teams, disappointing ones, will all impact the landscape.
Last year, the Steelers’ end-of-season schedule looked daunting when the 2023 version was released, facing the Cincinnati Bengals, Seattle Seahawks on the road, and Baltimore Ravens at their place to finish things out. Ultimately, the Steelers faced Jake Browning and not Joe Burrow while the Ravens rested key starters in their finale. It’s all going to look different by then. The schedule is interesting from a layout and structure, and none are stranger than the hand Pittsburgh was dealt.
