May 12, 2023 • 24 mins
Matt and Dale are breaking down the newly released Steelers Schedule
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Speaker 1 (00:04):
He's the Drive with Dale Lolly and Matt Williamson on
your twenty four to seven home of the Black and
Gold Steelers Nation Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Welcome to the Drive. I'm Dale LOLLI he is Matt Williamson.
And well, Matt, we finally know and was a Biggie
Small's that said, you don't know until you know whatever that.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Song, I should know that, and I don't.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
So I'm sure, I'm sure I butchered it. But we
all know what the Steelers' schedule is going to be
for the for the upcoming season, and well, I'll be
honest with you, Matt, looking at the Steelers' schedule sets
up pretty well for them, I agreed.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
And we knew the of course, we knew the opponents,
and we knew Homer away and knew that that was
going to be pretty favorable, you know. But I also
think they got some breaks too of when they land
and the sequencing and all those type of things as well.
So I guess let's dig right in, you know. I mean,
I think they're in a good spot starting with Week one.
(01:07):
I think the earlier you could play the Niners, the better.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Yeah. Absolutely, I will see what their quarterback situation is.
I did, Like I can't remember who it was. It
might have been Kyle Shanahan earlier this week was quoted
as saying, well, if you know Rock Purty, if everything
goes all right, he should be he should be fine
as long as he can throw the ball like he
used to or something along those lines. Well, no kidding more.
(01:34):
That's kind of the the big that's kind of the
big deal. When you're having elbow surgery and you're a quarterback.
We don't know that you're going to be back and
be able to throw and do all those things.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
I mean, that's if you're healthy, he'll play it basically,
always said that, yeah, right, essentially, of course, people made
a big deal of that.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
So you get them right out of the gate, obviously
their quarterback situation is in a state of flux, and
then you get that Cleveland Browns game.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Quick before we do, Like, I don't envy Shanahan as
to how am I divvying up my pres Oh yeah,
you know that's a little Harry, no doubt.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Yeah, no doubt about it. You know, are you is?
You know you have to get Sam Donald.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
The Steelers make get Donald, right, and so you better
Donald on my podcast, I said, I bet he starts
the season because they signed him like day one of
free agency. I honestly thought they'd trade Lance and it
would be Donald until party's ready. Who knows.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Yeah, you just don't know. Yeah, which is fine, none
of them. I mean, Donald is the most experienced of them,
but the Steelers just played him last.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
Year and he's had the worst career. I don't know
if he's had the worst career, but.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
It's not been a good one.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
I don't fear any of the three, to be honest,
I don't think any of them will be particularly overly prepared,
no matter who gets the start.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
That Week two game against the Browns is one it's
interesting to me, and here's why. So when we did
the projections with Mike Clay's projections earlier this week, that
was a game the Steelers were given a fifty two
percent chance to win at home. Now, I thought that
was low to begin with.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Yeah, yeah, I remember a saying that.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
But they're not losing at home on a Monday night
to the Browns.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Pretty slim chance. I mean, I think they're win per
chance of winning that game, even if we can settle
on fifty two percent went up drastically.
Speaker 2 (03:32):
Yeah, I mean they've they've won twenty consecutive Monday night
home games. Mike Tomlin is nineteen and three. Regardless of
where the venue's at on Monday nights, the Steelers are
winning that game.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Yeah, I one hundred percent agree. And these primetime games
as an overriding theme I think set up really well
because Tomlin's good at those as well. One small thing
I don't love is you get that extra day arrest
at the time of the year when you don't really
need it, and then you have a short week right
(04:06):
after that on the road. That doesn't throw me, but
you know, we'll get to the Raiders here in a minute.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Yeah, I mean, at least it is a Sunday night game.
You're not playing at one o'clock on you know, the
following Sunday, so you do get a little bit of
maybe an extra meeting in you know, in Vegas before
you you play the game that's actually gonna be Las Vegas,
the Raiders game in Week three, that's their home opener.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Oh is it okay?
Speaker 2 (04:31):
Yeah, they play their first two on the road, so
you'll get the Raiders coming off of back to back
road games, to start their season, and I believe I'm
trying to remember now, I think they might play the
Dolphins the week before that, So I mean that could
be a draining game for them, and maybe that's later
to see if I've be't dug that far into it.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
You know what they are. I have the giant schedule
Grood in front of me too. They are at Denver
week one, which is the worst thing ever for anyone
at Buffalo, then host of Steelers.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Okay, so I mean two games that could beat you
up a little bit.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
Absolutely, that's not an easy way to open. I would
expect them to be oh and too, but who knows.
You mentioned that it is a Sunday night game, and
you know, maybe you do get an extra meeting, but
maybe even better than that, the players might go to
the room and get an hour nap.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Yeah, they're gonna be They're gonna be well rested, you know,
sitting around all day and and getting ready to play.
The one that's tough to me is then the following
week you come back and play at Houston in week four.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
Yeah, you don't love that.
Speaker 2 (05:34):
Now, that's not a particularly difficult game, right right, right,
But yeah, that's that's you know, that's a short week,
back to back road games, back to back longer trips.
So that doesn't set up super well exactly.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
I mean, you like that they're not great teams and
Houston is still going to be finding themselves even if
things go well for them. But just in general, road
game Sunday night, that was a little bit of a
short week before that road game right after that, both
of which are substantial trips in a vacuum. Doesn't look great.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
Yeah, then you come home and play the Ravens in
week five. After that Ravens game, this sets up actually
really nicely because I remember I did this a couple
of years ago, the Steelers in Ravens the week after
they play each other. I went back a decade with this. Yeah, okay,
(06:30):
the Steelers had a slightly better record, it was slightly
above five hundred. The Ravens were below five hundred the
week after playing the Steelers.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
And I bet both those teams more often than not
finished the season over five hundred.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
Yeah, they were good teams, you know, right, they're good teams,
but the week after playing each other is bad. Is
bad because they beat the crap out of each other.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I hadn't thought of that angle, but it is nice
to have a by post Ravens.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Yeah, so you get a little to reassess there. But
five games to start the season. That quite frankly, if
you're not at least three and two, yeah, at least
three and two. You know, I'd be disappointed.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
I mean, you're favorite against the Texans, no matter what.
I mean.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
The line's already out for the San Francisco game. They're
actually three point underdogs against San Francisco and the lines
that I saw that came out last night.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
I understand that. But the Niners are a very good team.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
But I'll take the points.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
I'll take the points today in the middle of May.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yeah, again, we mentioned that Browns game. That's a game
you should win. The game at Las Vegas. I don't
know what to you know, what's the line on that
going to be?
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Pick them? Pick them. It's gonna be full of black
and gold too.
Speaker 2 (07:52):
I mean, we just saw that game late last year
and the Steelers you know, went out and handled the Raiders.
They had the rally to do it, but they still
beat them.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
I mean, I know, traditionally they have not done well
against the Raiders on the road wherever the Raiders live.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
But this is a little different than playing yeah, first
time in Las Vegas. We'll see, we'll see they're favorite
in Houston.
Speaker 1 (08:16):
I think the Raiders in Houston might be two of
the three worst AFC teams.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
You can make that argument. Yeah, and then the Ravens
at home again. You know, maybe they're underdogs and the Ravens.
Have you looked at the Ravens schedule, I've heard it's tough.
Speaker 1 (08:31):
I'm going to pull it up right now, real quick.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Actually, I mean the way they open this season not ideal.
Let's put it out this.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
I mean you mentioned that the Steelers get to buy
after the after when Baltimore comes here in Week five,
guess what they have to do.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
They gotta go to Europe.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
They go to London. That's the opposite of a bye.
Speaker 2 (08:53):
Wow, it's essentially they're the home team for that game.
So they're at Cleveland, then they're at Pittsburgh, then they
go to London.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
So they only have eight games in Baltimore. Yes, that's things.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Yeah, and they also play either they yeah, they I
guess they asked for that. Well I get no, because
the Boys don't start until Week six, so I guess
they they could have gotten them by there, they asked
not to have it. And so they're at Cincinnati in
week two at Cleveland and week four at Pittsburgh. In
(09:27):
week five, they've got their entire AFC North Road schedules.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Out of the way by week five. Wow, but that's
not great in this division. No, that could be in
those games.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
And then you're in Tennessee to play or you're you're
in London to play the Tennessee Titans, who, regardless of
what you think, if the Titans are going to be
good or not, that's going to be a physical game.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
To be a physical game. And you just played the Steelers,
an what that Steeler hangover game is?
Speaker 2 (09:57):
And then you come back and you play the Lions
in week seven at one o'clock at home.
Speaker 1 (10:01):
Say, I hate that Part's like flying home from London.
And then I get the Lions. How the team is?
Speaker 2 (10:07):
They don't even get their bye? When is their bye
only thirteen? Wow, that's a late bye, so late bye.
Speaker 1 (10:14):
They also finished again this season. Last four games are
really tough for them at Jags, at Niners, Miami Steelers.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Well even the games before there. By week twelve at
the Los Angeles Chargers after you host the Bengals in
week in week eleven, Yeah, like their scheduled does not
set up well for based on the schedule, I might
pick the Ravens last in the division.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
Thinking about that too. And I hadn't realized their home
away early versus late division set up until you mentioned it.
And I guess you could look at it glass half
fool and say, boy, from where's it at here from
week nine on? Or no, from week I went to
the wrong calling here from week ten on. Our three
(11:04):
division games are all in our building, and we're gonna
have things figured out by then. But you might be
owing three in the division when you.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
Go into that, and you very well might be.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
And the new offense, you know, you know, and and Lamar.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Lamar hasn't played the last couple of year Decembers and January.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
Any metric and especially Warren Sharps, who I have put
the most credit in the three division teams are about
the same and strength of schedule, Steelers have the easiest,
but Baltimore is a distant fourth.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Yeah, no, that's it's not an easy schedule for them
at all. You know, the Bengals also have some tough
games on their schedule because they were the first place team.
But I look at Baltimore schedule like just the way
it sets up. Uh, you know, you get a couple
of injuries in some of these games, you're going to
be in trouble.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Yeah, well they better not flounder early, get I think
is what I look at here for there.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
Yeah, and traditionally they haven't. I mean, they've been a
team that gets out they quickly and then kind of
falls off once the injuries start to happen.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
They've even killed with injuries later.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Yeah. So after that for the Steelers, after that Week
five game against the Ravens, you get a chance to
step back in week six and reassess. And the thing
that I really like about the Steelers' schedule, Matt, Yes,
they have the early buye, but then they have two
Thursday night games that that's great split up the rest
(12:26):
of the season so that you get the mini by twice,
both after three games or four games. So they get
the mini by and week nine after they play the Titans,
and then they get it again in week fourteen after
they play it they host the Patriots.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
Yeah, that is really favorable piggybacking off that my favorite
thing about the fact that you have two Thursday games
isn't ideal, but we know that's why how the league
is gone. But they're both here. And I went and
double checked Tennessee hosts the game the week before. The
Patriots host the game the week before. I was worried
one of those guys might have a bye the week
(13:02):
before a road Thursday game, which I wish the NFL
would do more of, but they don't. So they're gonna
practice like basically one day before traveling here for Thursday
night games.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
And the Steelers are at home before both of those
Thursday games. Exactly, you're not on you don't have a
road game, rush home, get one practice in, and then
go from there. You're at home, So Monday's in normal Monday, Tuesday,
you're practicing. Wednesday, you gets a walkthrough. Yeah, so it's
a little bit different.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
Thoughts so bad, and then you're right. Then you get
to really rest again at two different intervals after those Thursdays.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
Yeah. So coming out of that week six bye week,
they take another road trip, this one to Los Angeles
to play the Rams. This is where the schedule to
me gets super interesting because you've now gotten you've only
got really get on a long plane ride four times
this year at Las Vegas, at Houston, at the Rams,
(14:02):
and then at Seattle. But you have three of them
out of the way by week seven.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
Yea, that's a good point.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
And then things get so after they play the Rams
on October twenty second, and.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Real quick too, those three that you got out of
the way, there's been a lot of Steeler fans at
without a doubt.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
Yeah. So week eight is Jacksonville at home October twenty ninth,
the Titans for that Thursday night game, So it's a
quick turnaround, but then you get the extra week or
the extra rest. Week ten is.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
If Derrick Henry and Tannehill are not If Dereck Henry
is not a Titan and Levis is the Titans quarterback
by then too.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
Yeah, absolutely. Week ten is the Packers at home. Okay,
Week eleven you go to Cleveland for a one o'clock game.
Week twelve you go to Cincinnati for a one o'clock game.
Then you're home again for two. Arizona at home in
week thirteen, the Patriots at home week fourteen. So when
you go from the time you play the Rams, they'll
(15:05):
get back at that's the four o'clock. It'll get back.
Speaker 1 (15:09):
At midnight, late Sunday night, Yeah, late sun on October
twenty second.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
And then they don't leave. They don't go more than
three hundred miles away for the next eight weeks.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
Wow. Yeah, I was gonna just cut it before the Colts.
I mean, from week eight to fourteen, your only road
trips are at Brown's, which is the drive, and at
Bengals to which when you make them every year. Of course,
flight to.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Flight to Indianapolis is about what an hour and fifteen minutes. Yeah,
but like that's that's that's an easy trip.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
And then you host the Bengals again.
Speaker 2 (15:44):
And then you host the Bengals, even though that's.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
A Saturday game, it's a short week, but that's also home.
So all your short weeks are home.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
Yeah, all of them. Now, you got to come out
of that and after you play that. The trick of
their schedule. I think this year for the Steelers is
those final three games Cincinnati at home in week sixteen,
at Seattle in week seventeen, at Baltimore in week eighteen.
But I'll know the Steelers have won down in Baltimore.
(16:13):
I believe the last two years.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
I mean, you can't count on Lamar being hurt, but
he has been traditionally late in the year, as has
much of their team. But you better be pretty comfortable
after Week fifteen at the Colts with maybe a surplus
of wins in the bank at that point.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
Yeah, let's just roll through this thing. Matt, forty nine
ers at home. You caught me, you gonna say that's
a winner or loss.
Speaker 1 (16:41):
If I'm predicting right now, I'll say.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Win, Okay, Cleveland at home in week two, win at
Las Vegas in week three, win, Okay at Houston in
week four.
Speaker 1 (16:56):
Win. But if you said, hey, madd are you going
to bet that they'll start the season four and oh?
The answer is no, right right, So I'm gonna give
them a loss versus Ravens. But it's still four and
one going would be Amaz's.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
That's four wins. Okay at the Rams win, that's five.
Jacksonville at home.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Extremely winnable. But I'm not gonna just say they just
win six out of seven and seven, you know what
I mean? That's not only NFL works.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Wow, Okay, Tennessee at home on a short week, I
think they're terrible.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Win.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
That's six. Green Bay at home in week ten win.
That's seven with them either at Cleveland in week eleven, okay,
at Cincinnati loss, Arizona at home, easy win, that's eight.
Patriots at home.
Speaker 1 (17:49):
Really tough wins.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Slash the Thursday night game.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
Yeah, that's what I like best about it is short
week Thursday here, but you know they're gonna be harder
to play against.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
Yeah, what's that eight? Nine? Nine? Yeah, that's nine at Indianapolis.
Speaker 1 (18:05):
I fear this game way more than you do. And
I think the Colts are going to have a more
respectable season than I think you do. But I'm just
going to pick the Steelers in the middle of May here.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
That would be ten. Mm Cincinnati at home.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
I'm gonna say the last three or losses, okay, pretty
generous early.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
That's still ten. Still ten wins. I either but Seattle,
I don't know what Baltimore is going to be. No,
and either way, that's ten. That's ten wins going into
that final stretch.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
Yeah, right right, Yeah. If you're ten and well I'm
predicting to be ten and four, of course you'd take that.
But that seems a little rich. No matter what I mean,
I think.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
The Steelers could be this year. This Steelers team could
be this year's Giants team better, only a better football team.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Yeah, Like the Giants and Vikings to me were kind
of fluky, you know, they got some bounces and weren't
as good as their record. Or that might be true
with this upcoming Steeler team just because you're wiped the floor.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Oh you're playing yeah yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, like they
could again, they could be sitting there at ten and
four and people are going, well, are the Steelers any good?
Speaker 1 (19:21):
And you might and they might have eleven wins? Who knows,
it's not inconceivable, right, but.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
I think they're I think, you know, to me, I
think they're a good football team that the way this
schedule sets up is conducive to them racking up some wins.
Speaker 1 (19:44):
I mean again, I'm not predicting there'll be ten and
four or eleven and four or ten and five at Seattle,
but if they are, they're probably favored.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
Yeah, I mean, I you know what I mean. Yeah,
So it's interesting, you know, the schedule does matter. As
I mentioned my five for Friday today, Like again, when
we went through that Mike Clay thing in that that
Brown's game was a toss up game. Basically, it's not anymore. No,
I agree, based on on when you're playing it some
(20:18):
of these other games. You know that Ravens, Ye, that
Ravens stretch for them at at Houston or when they're
at Cleveland at Pittsburgh, and then they get a head
to London, Like are they leaving for London right after
the Steeler game? They leaving the next morning? Are these
guys going to be overly concerned with Oh man, I
gotta we gotta, I gotta be packed. I'm ready to
(20:39):
go to London? Like are they going to overlook this
game against the Steelers?
Speaker 1 (20:44):
You would you would think not because it's a game
against Steelers, but it's essentially three straight road games for them.
But it's looming, you know, right like they could be
dreading that trip to I gotta get you know, all
this stuff together. I gotta I'm flying my family over
for you know, all the stuff that you got to
worry about with a game like that. And just logistics.
(21:04):
I mean, even the coaches are like, where are we practicing?
You know, how do I get the It's not the
normal training facility, weight room, all that stuff, you know,
no one knows where to go, just you know, just
logistics stuff.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
Yeah. So I think that sets up well for the
Steelers with this schedule, and and uh well it came
out about as well as you could expect, you know,
something like this to happen. I saw like somebody said
something about they were talking about the Giants schedule. Can
you call up the Giant schedule real quick? Yes? O
got where they ad here?
Speaker 1 (21:38):
So they have a three game road swing, yeah, at Vegas,
at Dallas, at Washington, which the NFL really doesn't like
doing to you. But I mean your odds dropped dramatically
after each one.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
And if you look at that, I believe one of
those is a Thursday night game. Am I wrong about that?
Speaker 1 (21:58):
You are wrong about that?
Speaker 2 (22:00):
Vegas? Okay, No, They're all Sundays. Yeah, yeah, but that's
I mean, are you staying in Vegas? Are you staying?
Are you you know, gonna stay?
Speaker 1 (22:09):
That's a Thursday night thing though. Week one they host Dallas,
then they go to Arizona, which is a cross country
road trip, and then a Thursday night game at San
fran Well, so it's brutal. You just stay on the
West coast.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
Maybe that's where I was thinking that they were, Yeah,
because I was listening to that to a serious today
and they were talking about, you know, will the Giants
stay in Arizona somewhere and just train and just stay
out there because they get another game on the coast
that schedules brutal.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
And they do have two Thursday night games, both on
the road at San fran and Week three at Cleveland
and week seventeen. Yuck.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
Yeah, that's brutal.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
That's pretty rough to do to a team. You have
three you got a three game road stretch, which they
try to never do. Both your Thursday games are on
the road too. Good luck?
Speaker 2 (22:56):
Yeah, I mean, and you go in week five at
Miami and you followed it up at Buffalo the fall Uffalo,
and you know, we.
Speaker 1 (23:08):
And everyone in the division. Does you still have to
go to Dallas and Philly? You know?
Speaker 2 (23:12):
I mean, if you that's that's coming out of that
stretch of at Arizona at San Francisco, then you're home
for Seattle, then you're back on the road again at
Miami at Buffalo. That's forty your first five games.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
I have all the respect in the world for Brian Day.
Speaker 2 (23:26):
Ball.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
But I don't think he's gonna being Coach of the
year conversation. I mean, this is that's not his fault.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
You know, just look the way the schedule falls. Yeah, right,
because the schedule does matter. All these people that that's what.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
Kills bad teams either that.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
Well, yeah, and last year, you know, they I think
they took advantage of some They played the AFC South.
They took advantage of that. Whi's good for them. I mean,
you got to beat who's on your schedule, and we'll
talk about that all season along with the Steelers. For sure,
you got to beat who's on your schedule.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
But I mean they also played the NFC West, so
they get the Rams and Cardinals. But other than that,
I mean they play their East. They play the other East,
which is awful, and there's like no easy games on
the schedule, let alone the logistics and travel of it
all are horrendous.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
Horrendous. Yeah. Absolutely, Hey, you can now listen to Steelers
Nation Radio anytime anywhere through your smart speaker. Just say Alexa,
play Steelers Nation Radio from my heart and Alexa will
take care of the rest. I'm Dale Lallie. He is
Matt Williamson. You're listening to the Drive here on Steelers
Nation Radio. We'll be back with more right after this
He's the Drive with Dale Lolly and Matt Williamson on
your twenty four to seven home of the Black and
Gold Steelers Nation Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Welcome to the Drive. I'm Dale LOLLI he is Matt Williamson.
And well, Matt, we finally know and was a Biggie
Small's that said, you don't know until you know whatever that.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Song, I should know that, and I don't.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
So I'm sure, I'm sure I butchered it. But we
all know what the Steelers' schedule is going to be
for the for the upcoming season, and well, I'll be
honest with you, Matt, looking at the Steelers' schedule sets
up pretty well for them, I agreed.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
And we knew the of course, we knew the opponents,
and we knew Homer away and knew that that was
going to be pretty favorable, you know. But I also
think they got some breaks too of when they land
and the sequencing and all those type of things as well.
So I guess let's dig right in, you know. I mean,
I think they're in a good spot starting with Week one.
(01:07):
I think the earlier you could play the Niners, the better.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Yeah. Absolutely, I will see what their quarterback situation is.
I did, Like I can't remember who it was. It
might have been Kyle Shanahan earlier this week was quoted
as saying, well, if you know Rock Purty, if everything
goes all right, he should be he should be fine
as long as he can throw the ball like he
used to or something along those lines. Well, no kidding more.
(01:34):
That's kind of the the big that's kind of the
big deal. When you're having elbow surgery and you're a quarterback.
We don't know that you're going to be back and
be able to throw and do all those things.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
I mean, that's if you're healthy, he'll play it basically,
always said that, yeah, right, essentially, of course, people made
a big deal of that.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
So you get them right out of the gate, obviously
their quarterback situation is in a state of flux, and
then you get that Cleveland Browns game.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
Quick before we do, Like, I don't envy Shanahan as
to how am I divvying up my pres Oh yeah,
you know that's a little Harry, no doubt.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Yeah, no doubt about it. You know, are you is?
You know you have to get Sam Donald.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
The Steelers make get Donald, right, and so you better
Donald on my podcast, I said, I bet he starts
the season because they signed him like day one of
free agency. I honestly thought they'd trade Lance and it
would be Donald until party's ready. Who knows.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Yeah, you just don't know. Yeah, which is fine, none
of them. I mean, Donald is the most experienced of them,
but the Steelers just played him last.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
Year and he's had the worst career. I don't know
if he's had the worst career, but.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
It's not been a good one.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
I don't fear any of the three, to be honest,
I don't think any of them will be particularly overly prepared,
no matter who gets the start.
Speaker 2 (02:56):
That Week two game against the Browns is one it's
interesting to me, and here's why. So when we did
the projections with Mike Clay's projections earlier this week, that
was a game the Steelers were given a fifty two
percent chance to win at home. Now, I thought that
was low to begin with.
Speaker 1 (03:16):
Yeah, yeah, I remember a saying that.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
But they're not losing at home on a Monday night
to the Browns.
Speaker 1 (03:24):
Pretty slim chance. I mean, I think they're win per
chance of winning that game, even if we can settle
on fifty two percent went up drastically.
Speaker 2 (03:32):
Yeah, I mean they've they've won twenty consecutive Monday night
home games. Mike Tomlin is nineteen and three. Regardless of
where the venue's at on Monday nights, the Steelers are
winning that game.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Yeah, I one hundred percent agree. And these primetime games
as an overriding theme I think set up really well
because Tomlin's good at those as well. One small thing
I don't love is you get that extra day arrest
at the time of the year when you don't really
need it, and then you have a short week right
(04:06):
after that on the road. That doesn't throw me, but
you know, we'll get to the Raiders here in a minute.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Yeah, I mean, at least it is a Sunday night game.
You're not playing at one o'clock on you know, the
following Sunday, so you do get a little bit of
maybe an extra meeting in you know, in Vegas before
you you play the game that's actually gonna be Las Vegas,
the Raiders game in Week three, that's their home opener.
Speaker 1 (04:30):
Oh is it okay?
Speaker 2 (04:31):
Yeah, they play their first two on the road, so
you'll get the Raiders coming off of back to back
road games, to start their season, and I believe I'm
trying to remember now, I think they might play the
Dolphins the week before that, So I mean that could
be a draining game for them, and maybe that's later
to see if I've be't dug that far into it.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
You know what they are. I have the giant schedule
Grood in front of me too. They are at Denver
week one, which is the worst thing ever for anyone
at Buffalo, then host of Steelers.
Speaker 2 (05:01):
Okay, so I mean two games that could beat you
up a little bit.
Speaker 1 (05:05):
Absolutely, that's not an easy way to open. I would
expect them to be oh and too, but who knows.
You mentioned that it is a Sunday night game, and
you know, maybe you do get an extra meeting, but
maybe even better than that, the players might go to
the room and get an hour nap.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Yeah, they're gonna be They're gonna be well rested, you know,
sitting around all day and and getting ready to play.
The one that's tough to me is then the following
week you come back and play at Houston in week four.
Speaker 1 (05:32):
Yeah, you don't love that.
Speaker 2 (05:34):
Now, that's not a particularly difficult game, right right, right,
But yeah, that's that's you know, that's a short week,
back to back road games, back to back longer trips.
So that doesn't set up super well exactly.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
I mean, you like that they're not great teams and
Houston is still going to be finding themselves even if
things go well for them. But just in general, road
game Sunday night, that was a little bit of a
short week before that road game right after that, both
of which are substantial trips in a vacuum. Doesn't look great.
Speaker 2 (06:10):
Yeah, then you come home and play the Ravens in
week five. After that Ravens game, this sets up actually
really nicely because I remember I did this a couple
of years ago, the Steelers in Ravens the week after
they play each other. I went back a decade with this. Yeah, okay,
(06:30):
the Steelers had a slightly better record, it was slightly
above five hundred. The Ravens were below five hundred the
week after playing the Steelers.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
And I bet both those teams more often than not
finished the season over five hundred.
Speaker 2 (06:44):
Yeah, they were good teams, you know, right, they're good teams,
but the week after playing each other is bad. Is
bad because they beat the crap out of each other.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I hadn't thought of that angle, but it is nice
to have a by post Ravens.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Yeah, so you get a little to reassess there. But
five games to start the season. That quite frankly, if
you're not at least three and two, yeah, at least
three and two. You know, I'd be disappointed.
Speaker 1 (07:15):
I mean, you're favorite against the Texans, no matter what.
I mean.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
The line's already out for the San Francisco game. They're
actually three point underdogs against San Francisco and the lines
that I saw that came out last night.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
I understand that. But the Niners are a very good team.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
But I'll take the points.
Speaker 1 (07:34):
I'll take the points today in the middle of May.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Yeah, again, we mentioned that Browns game. That's a game
you should win. The game at Las Vegas. I don't
know what to you know, what's the line on that
going to be?
Speaker 1 (07:47):
Pick them? Pick them. It's gonna be full of black
and gold too.
Speaker 2 (07:52):
I mean, we just saw that game late last year
and the Steelers you know, went out and handled the Raiders.
They had the rally to do it, but they still
beat them.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
I mean, I know, traditionally they have not done well
against the Raiders on the road wherever the Raiders live.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
But this is a little different than playing yeah, first
time in Las Vegas. We'll see, we'll see they're favorite
in Houston.
Speaker 1 (08:16):
I think the Raiders in Houston might be two of
the three worst AFC teams.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
You can make that argument. Yeah, and then the Ravens
at home again. You know, maybe they're underdogs and the Ravens.
Have you looked at the Ravens schedule, I've heard it's tough.
Speaker 1 (08:31):
I'm going to pull it up right now, real quick.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Actually, I mean the way they open this season not ideal.
Let's put it out this.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
I mean you mentioned that the Steelers get to buy
after the after when Baltimore comes here in Week five,
guess what they have to do.
Speaker 2 (08:49):
They gotta go to Europe.
Speaker 1 (08:50):
They go to London. That's the opposite of a bye.
Speaker 2 (08:53):
Wow, it's essentially they're the home team for that game.
So they're at Cleveland, then they're at Pittsburgh, then they
go to London.
Speaker 1 (09:02):
So they only have eight games in Baltimore. Yes, that's things.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
Yeah, and they also play either they yeah, they I
guess they asked for that. Well I get no, because
the Boys don't start until Week six, so I guess
they they could have gotten them by there, they asked
not to have it. And so they're at Cincinnati in
week two at Cleveland and week four at Pittsburgh. In
(09:27):
week five, they've got their entire AFC North Road schedules.
Speaker 1 (09:30):
Out of the way by week five. Wow, but that's
not great in this division. No, that could be in
those games.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
And then you're in Tennessee to play or you're you're
in London to play the Tennessee Titans, who, regardless of
what you think, if the Titans are going to be
good or not, that's going to be a physical game.
Speaker 1 (09:51):
To be a physical game. And you just played the Steelers,
an what that Steeler hangover game is?
Speaker 2 (09:57):
And then you come back and you play the Lions
in week seven at one o'clock at home.
Speaker 1 (10:01):
Say, I hate that Part's like flying home from London.
And then I get the Lions. How the team is?
Speaker 2 (10:07):
They don't even get their bye? When is their bye
only thirteen? Wow, that's a late bye, so late bye.
Speaker 1 (10:14):
They also finished again this season. Last four games are
really tough for them at Jags, at Niners, Miami Steelers.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Well even the games before there. By week twelve at
the Los Angeles Chargers after you host the Bengals in
week in week eleven, Yeah, like their scheduled does not
set up well for based on the schedule, I might
pick the Ravens last in the division.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
Thinking about that too. And I hadn't realized their home
away early versus late division set up until you mentioned it.
And I guess you could look at it glass half
fool and say, boy, from where's it at here from
week nine on? Or no, from week I went to
the wrong calling here from week ten on. Our three
(11:04):
division games are all in our building, and we're gonna
have things figured out by then. But you might be
owing three in the division when you.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
Go into that, and you very well might be.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
And the new offense, you know, you know, and and Lamar.
Speaker 2 (11:15):
Lamar hasn't played the last couple of year Decembers and January.
Speaker 1 (11:20):
Any metric and especially Warren Sharps, who I have put
the most credit in the three division teams are about
the same and strength of schedule, Steelers have the easiest,
but Baltimore is a distant fourth.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
Yeah, no, that's it's not an easy schedule for them
at all. You know, the Bengals also have some tough
games on their schedule because they were the first place team.
But I look at Baltimore schedule like just the way
it sets up. Uh, you know, you get a couple
of injuries in some of these games, you're going to
be in trouble.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Yeah, well they better not flounder early, get I think
is what I look at here for there.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
Yeah, and traditionally they haven't. I mean, they've been a
team that gets out they quickly and then kind of
falls off once the injuries start to happen.
Speaker 1 (12:03):
They've even killed with injuries later.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Yeah. So after that for the Steelers, after that Week
five game against the Ravens, you get a chance to
step back in week six and reassess. And the thing
that I really like about the Steelers' schedule, Matt, Yes,
they have the early buye, but then they have two
Thursday night games that that's great split up the rest
(12:26):
of the season so that you get the mini by twice,
both after three games or four games. So they get
the mini by and week nine after they play the Titans,
and then they get it again in week fourteen after
they play it they host the Patriots.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
Yeah, that is really favorable piggybacking off that my favorite
thing about the fact that you have two Thursday games
isn't ideal, but we know that's why how the league
is gone. But they're both here. And I went and
double checked Tennessee hosts the game the week before. The
Patriots host the game the week before. I was worried
one of those guys might have a bye the week
(13:02):
before a road Thursday game, which I wish the NFL
would do more of, but they don't. So they're gonna
practice like basically one day before traveling here for Thursday
night games.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
And the Steelers are at home before both of those
Thursday games. Exactly, you're not on you don't have a
road game, rush home, get one practice in, and then
go from there. You're at home, So Monday's in normal Monday, Tuesday,
you're practicing. Wednesday, you gets a walkthrough. Yeah, so it's
a little bit different.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
Thoughts so bad, and then you're right. Then you get
to really rest again at two different intervals after those Thursdays.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
Yeah. So coming out of that week six bye week,
they take another road trip, this one to Los Angeles
to play the Rams. This is where the schedule to
me gets super interesting because you've now gotten you've only
got really get on a long plane ride four times
this year at Las Vegas, at Houston, at the Rams,
(14:02):
and then at Seattle. But you have three of them
out of the way by week seven.
Speaker 1 (14:09):
Yea, that's a good point.
Speaker 2 (14:10):
And then things get so after they play the Rams
on October twenty second, and.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Real quick too, those three that you got out of
the way, there's been a lot of Steeler fans at
without a doubt.
Speaker 2 (14:20):
Yeah. So week eight is Jacksonville at home October twenty ninth,
the Titans for that Thursday night game, So it's a
quick turnaround, but then you get the extra week or
the extra rest. Week ten is.
Speaker 1 (14:35):
If Derrick Henry and Tannehill are not If Dereck Henry
is not a Titan and Levis is the Titans quarterback
by then too.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
Yeah, absolutely. Week ten is the Packers at home. Okay,
Week eleven you go to Cleveland for a one o'clock game.
Week twelve you go to Cincinnati for a one o'clock game.
Then you're home again for two. Arizona at home in
week thirteen, the Patriots at home week fourteen. So when
you go from the time you play the Rams, they'll
(15:05):
get back at that's the four o'clock. It'll get back.
Speaker 1 (15:09):
At midnight, late Sunday night, Yeah, late sun on October
twenty second.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
And then they don't leave. They don't go more than
three hundred miles away for the next eight weeks.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
Wow. Yeah, I was gonna just cut it before the Colts.
I mean, from week eight to fourteen, your only road
trips are at Brown's, which is the drive, and at
Bengals to which when you make them every year. Of course,
flight to.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
Flight to Indianapolis is about what an hour and fifteen minutes. Yeah,
but like that's that's that's an easy trip.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
And then you host the Bengals again.
Speaker 2 (15:44):
And then you host the Bengals, even though that's.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
A Saturday game, it's a short week, but that's also home.
So all your short weeks are home.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
Yeah, all of them. Now, you got to come out
of that and after you play that. The trick of
their schedule. I think this year for the Steelers is
those final three games Cincinnati at home in week sixteen,
at Seattle in week seventeen, at Baltimore in week eighteen.
But I'll know the Steelers have won down in Baltimore.
(16:13):
I believe the last two years.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
I mean, you can't count on Lamar being hurt, but
he has been traditionally late in the year, as has
much of their team. But you better be pretty comfortable
after Week fifteen at the Colts with maybe a surplus
of wins in the bank at that point.
Speaker 2 (16:32):
Yeah, let's just roll through this thing. Matt, forty nine
ers at home. You caught me, you gonna say that's
a winner or loss.
Speaker 1 (16:41):
If I'm predicting right now, I'll say.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Win, Okay, Cleveland at home in week two, win at
Las Vegas in week three, win, Okay at Houston in
week four.
Speaker 1 (16:56):
Win. But if you said, hey, madd are you going
to bet that they'll start the season four and oh?
The answer is no, right right, So I'm gonna give
them a loss versus Ravens. But it's still four and
one going would be Amaz's.
Speaker 2 (17:08):
That's four wins. Okay at the Rams win, that's five.
Jacksonville at home.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Extremely winnable. But I'm not gonna just say they just
win six out of seven and seven, you know what
I mean? That's not only NFL works.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
Wow, Okay, Tennessee at home on a short week, I
think they're terrible.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Win.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
That's six. Green Bay at home in week ten win.
That's seven with them either at Cleveland in week eleven, okay,
at Cincinnati loss, Arizona at home, easy win, that's eight.
Patriots at home.
Speaker 1 (17:49):
Really tough wins.
Speaker 2 (17:51):
Slash the Thursday night game.
Speaker 1 (17:53):
Yeah, that's what I like best about it is short
week Thursday here, but you know they're gonna be harder
to play against.
Speaker 2 (17:59):
Yeah, what's that eight? Nine? Nine? Yeah, that's nine at Indianapolis.
Speaker 1 (18:05):
I fear this game way more than you do. And
I think the Colts are going to have a more
respectable season than I think you do. But I'm just
going to pick the Steelers in the middle of May here.
Speaker 2 (18:15):
That would be ten. Mm Cincinnati at home.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
I'm gonna say the last three or losses, okay, pretty
generous early.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
That's still ten. Still ten wins. I either but Seattle,
I don't know what Baltimore is going to be. No,
and either way, that's ten. That's ten wins going into
that final stretch.
Speaker 1 (18:39):
Yeah, right right, Yeah. If you're ten and well I'm
predicting to be ten and four, of course you'd take that.
But that seems a little rich. No matter what I mean,
I think.
Speaker 2 (18:50):
The Steelers could be this year. This Steelers team could
be this year's Giants team better, only a better football team.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Yeah, Like the Giants and Vikings to me were kind
of fluky, you know, they got some bounces and weren't
as good as their record. Or that might be true
with this upcoming Steeler team just because you're wiped the floor.
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Oh you're playing yeah yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, like they
could again, they could be sitting there at ten and
four and people are going, well, are the Steelers any good?
Speaker 1 (19:21):
And you might and they might have eleven wins? Who knows,
it's not inconceivable, right, but.
Speaker 2 (19:29):
I think they're I think, you know, to me, I
think they're a good football team that the way this
schedule sets up is conducive to them racking up some wins.
Speaker 1 (19:44):
I mean again, I'm not predicting there'll be ten and
four or eleven and four or ten and five at Seattle,
but if they are, they're probably favored.
Speaker 2 (19:56):
Yeah, I mean, I you know what I mean. Yeah,
So it's interesting, you know, the schedule does matter. As
I mentioned my five for Friday today, Like again, when
we went through that Mike Clay thing in that that
Brown's game was a toss up game. Basically, it's not anymore. No,
I agree, based on on when you're playing it some
(20:18):
of these other games. You know that Ravens, Ye, that
Ravens stretch for them at at Houston or when they're
at Cleveland at Pittsburgh, and then they get a head
to London, Like are they leaving for London right after
the Steeler game? They leaving the next morning? Are these
guys going to be overly concerned with Oh man, I
gotta we gotta, I gotta be packed. I'm ready to
(20:39):
go to London? Like are they going to overlook this
game against the Steelers?
Speaker 1 (20:44):
You would you would think not because it's a game
against Steelers, but it's essentially three straight road games for them.
But it's looming, you know, right like they could be
dreading that trip to I gotta get you know, all
this stuff together. I gotta I'm flying my family over
for you know, all the stuff that you got to
worry about with a game like that. And just logistics.
(21:04):
I mean, even the coaches are like, where are we practicing?
You know, how do I get the It's not the
normal training facility, weight room, all that stuff, you know,
no one knows where to go, just you know, just
logistics stuff.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
Yeah. So I think that sets up well for the
Steelers with this schedule, and and uh well it came
out about as well as you could expect, you know,
something like this to happen. I saw like somebody said
something about they were talking about the Giants schedule. Can
you call up the Giant schedule real quick? Yes? O
got where they ad here?
Speaker 1 (21:38):
So they have a three game road swing, yeah, at Vegas,
at Dallas, at Washington, which the NFL really doesn't like
doing to you. But I mean your odds dropped dramatically
after each one.
Speaker 2 (21:54):
And if you look at that, I believe one of
those is a Thursday night game. Am I wrong about that?
Speaker 1 (21:58):
You are wrong about that?
Speaker 2 (22:00):
Vegas? Okay, No, They're all Sundays. Yeah, yeah, but that's
I mean, are you staying in Vegas? Are you staying?
Are you you know, gonna stay?
Speaker 1 (22:09):
That's a Thursday night thing though. Week one they host Dallas,
then they go to Arizona, which is a cross country
road trip, and then a Thursday night game at San
fran Well, so it's brutal. You just stay on the
West coast.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
Maybe that's where I was thinking that they were, Yeah,
because I was listening to that to a serious today
and they were talking about, you know, will the Giants
stay in Arizona somewhere and just train and just stay
out there because they get another game on the coast
that schedules brutal.
Speaker 1 (22:36):
And they do have two Thursday night games, both on
the road at San fran and Week three at Cleveland
and week seventeen. Yuck.
Speaker 2 (22:45):
Yeah, that's brutal.
Speaker 1 (22:46):
That's pretty rough to do to a team. You have
three you got a three game road stretch, which they
try to never do. Both your Thursday games are on
the road too. Good luck?
Speaker 2 (22:56):
Yeah, I mean, and you go in week five at
Miami and you followed it up at Buffalo the fall Uffalo,
and you know, we.
Speaker 1 (23:08):
And everyone in the division. Does you still have to
go to Dallas and Philly? You know?
Speaker 2 (23:12):
I mean, if you that's that's coming out of that
stretch of at Arizona at San Francisco, then you're home
for Seattle, then you're back on the road again at
Miami at Buffalo. That's forty your first five games.
Speaker 1 (23:24):
I have all the respect in the world for Brian Day.
Speaker 2 (23:26):
Ball.
Speaker 1 (23:26):
But I don't think he's gonna being Coach of the
year conversation. I mean, this is that's not his fault.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
You know, just look the way the schedule falls. Yeah, right,
because the schedule does matter. All these people that that's what.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
Kills bad teams either that.
Speaker 2 (23:39):
Well, yeah, and last year, you know, they I think
they took advantage of some They played the AFC South.
They took advantage of that. Whi's good for them. I mean,
you got to beat who's on your schedule, and we'll
talk about that all season along with the Steelers. For sure,
you got to beat who's on your schedule.
Speaker 1 (23:57):
But I mean they also played the NFC West, so
they get the Rams and Cardinals. But other than that,
I mean they play their East. They play the other East,
which is awful, and there's like no easy games on
the schedule, let alone the logistics and travel of it
all are horrendous.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
Horrendous. Yeah. Absolutely, Hey, you can now listen to Steelers
Nation Radio anytime anywhere through your smart speaker. Just say Alexa,
play Steelers Nation Radio from my heart and Alexa will
take care of the rest. I'm Dale Lallie. He is
Matt Williamson. You're listening to the Drive here on Steelers
Nation Radio. We'll be back with more right after this
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