The moves the Pittsburgh Steelers made this offseason seem to prove they’re growing weary of winning seasons with no reward in the playoffs. Despite that, the sportsbooks are setting their odds very low, projecting the Steelers’ win total at just 8.5. It’s a number that many think is too low.
Not analyst Connor Rogers.
“It seems crazy to take the under, I am going to take the under,” Rogers said Tuesday on Chris Simms Unbuttoned. “It’s historically a horrific move to bet the under on a Mike Tomlin team. My problem with [Aaron] Rodgers is that after September when he’s been hit a few times, that was it for him last year. He’s just not the same guy anymore. It’s just hard for me to buy into this team as getting over the hump with him under center, especially where we don’t really know what he’s going to look like coming into the year.”
It feels like analysts have been predicting the Steelers to have a losing season for quite some time now. Yet, it just hasn’t happened. And it doesn’t look especially likely for the Steelers to go under that win total this year.
For starters, it’s hard to find a spot on the roster that you could argue got worse from last season. On defense, the interior of the line and the secondary were the biggest issues. Although Derrick Harmon is injured, he’ll still play for a majority of the season. Yahya Black has looked impressive as well. In the secondary, Jalen Ramsey and Darius Slay headline a list of players who have impressive NFL resumes.
There are some questions offensively, specifically with the line. However, there’s a ton of potential on that unit. If the Steelers can get good seasons out of Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson, the offense should run smoothly.
That said, problems can arise. For the Steelers to go under their projected win total, a lot of it might have to do with Rodgers. Eight or less wins means the offensive line didn’t protect him well enough, and players like Kaleb Johnson, Jaylen Warren, or Austin and Wilson didn’t step up.
If there’s one thing we’ve learned about Mike Tomlin, it’s that he can coax at least a .500 season out of even underwhelming teams. This group of players happens to be much more talented, on paper, than in recent years. The Steelers aren’t Super Bowl contenders, but it would be a massive disappointment if they didn’t exceed the 8.5 win total oddsmakers have set for them.
