Right now, the Pittsburgh Steelers feel like they’re in a bad place because they’re coming off a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. It was an avoidable loss, but the Steelers’ defense had a terrible performance. Despite that, Pittsburgh is still in first place in the AFC North. Their team hasn’t been awful this year. At times, it’s played up to their potential. However, Pete Prisco thinks the Steelers could be in for an ugly downward spiral.
“When you look at this schedule, would it surprise you, and I’m asking this sincerely, that they lost the next, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven [games]?” Prisco asked on Wednesday on CBS Sports HQ. “Packers, Colts, Chargers, Bengals, Bears, Bills, and Ravens, and they’re at the Bears, by the way…
“It could happen, is what I’m saying. Look at that schedule. It really could happen. Those teams are good football teams they’re playing.”
That feels like a ridiculous statement. Is it possible that the Steelers could lose their next seven games? Yes, but that’s just because very little is impossible in the NFL. Is that scenario likely? Not at all, for several reasons.
First, if the Steelers lose their next seven games, that will give them their first losing season since 2003. They’d be 4-9 and on an eight-game losing streak. Even when they lost Ben Roethlisberger for the year in 2019, the Steelers still somehow didn’t finish the year with a losing record.
Also, the Steelers haven’t lost at least eight games in a row since the 1969 season, the first year Chuck Noll was their head coach. The Steelers have had some rough losing streaks over the years, including losing their final four regular-season games last year. However, it’s been decades since they went on as bad a skid as Prisco believes they could go on in the coming weeks.
It’s true that the Steelers’ schedule is about to get more difficult. Teams like the Packers, Colts, and Chargers are among the NFL’s best. Perhaps the Steelers could lose those three games, but they could bounce back after that.
They almost beat the Bengals last week, and their second meeting will be in Pittsburgh. The Steelers haven’t been pushovers, either. They have flaws, but they have a lot of talent. Specifically, their offense has been steadily improving throughout the year. If the Steelers’ defense can pick things up, then the team could become a contender. It’s hard to see them going on an eight-game losing streak.
