Pittsburgh Steelers: Examining the 2018 schedule

On Thursday night, the NFL officially released the 2018 regular season schedule. How will the schedule impact the Pittsburgh Steelers, and how will they fare?

It’s one of the best times of year. There are few days that can make fully grown adults feel like a child on Christmas morning again, and the release of the NFL schedules is one of them. The Pittsburgh Steelers, who will begin the 2018 season as the defending back-to-back AFC North champions, will look to reload following the conclusion of the 2018 NFL Draft and make another run at a seventh Lombardi Trophy.

So what will the 2018 schedule release bring? We know for a fact who the Steelers are playing, and where. Home opponents: Baltimore, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Atlanta, Carolina, Kansas City, New England and Los Angeles (Chargers). Away opponents: Baltimore, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Denver, Jacksonville, New Orleans, Oakland and Tampa Bay.

Now, it’s just a matter of when, and that when, has just been released. Here’s a look at the Steelers’ 2018 regular season:

Weeks 1-4

1. AT Cleveland
2. Kansas City
3. AT Tampa Bay (Monday Night)
4. Baltimore (Sunday Night)

The Steelers will open regular season play much like they did last year with a trip to Cleveland in week one that ended with a 21-18 victory. Another mirror from 2017 may be Le’Veon Bell and his debut after holding out the entire preseason, a tactic Bell said he plans on implementing again for 2018. The Steelers then return to Pittsburgh for their home opener against the Chiefs, a rematch of the 19-13 victory from last season. This game will likely pit new Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes against Pittsburgh for the first time in his career.

Week 3 sees the Steelers traveling to Tampa Bay for the first time since 2010. The last time these two teams met was in 2014, where the win-less Buccaneers went into Pittsburgh and upset the Steelers by a score of 27-24. Tampa Bay has been kind to the Steelers, however, with their last loss at Raymond James Stadium coming in 1998. After dodging cannons from the pirate ship, Pittsburgh returns home to host divisional rival Baltimore. The Ravens were swept by the Steelers last year, as the Ravens will look to emerge victorious from Heinz Field for the first time since 2015.

Weeks 5-8

5. Atlanta
6. AT Cincinnati
7. BYE WEEK
8. Cleveland

The Atlanta Falcons come into town in week for their quad-yearly meeting with the Steelers. The Steelers hold a 13-2 all time series record against Atlanta, and have the rarity of a game ending in a tie that dates back to 2002. This matchup will feature two of the more prominent offenses in the league, with star-studded names like Julio Jones, Antonio Brown, Matt Ryan, Ben Roethlisberger, Devonta Freeman and Le’Veon Bell. The Steelers will then travel to Cincinnati, a place where they’ve lost a mere three times since the turn of the new millennium.

After visiting the friendly confines of Paul Brown Stadium, Pittsburgh will utilize Week 7 as their week off to rest up and prepare themselves for another divisional matchup. A Week 8 battle at home with the Browns will conclude the series with Cleveland, and leave only two divisional games left in the second half of the schedule.

Weeks 9-12

9. AT Baltimore
10. Carolina (Thursday Night)
11. AT Jacksonville (Sunday Night)
12. AT Denver

The Steelers will conclude a three-game divisional streak in Baltimore as they conclude their season series with the Ravens. Historically speaking, the Steelers struggle at M&T Bank Stadium, having lost their last 4-of-5 in Baltimore. This game, although only in Week 9, will likely carry heavy playoff implications within the division. Carolina then visits the Steelers in just their seventh meeting all-time, with the Steelers carrying a five-game win streak in the series.

Pittsburgh then voyages down to Jacksonville for a rematch of last season’s AFC Divisional playoff game with the Jaguars. This will be one of the most anticipated matchups within the conference, if not the entire league as both teams will likely be in playoff contention again. The Steelers continue their road trip into Mile High Stadium as they take on the Broncos. Denver has fared very well at home against Pittsburgh, having not lost at home to them since 2009.

Weeks 13-17

13. Los Angeles (Chargers)
14. AT Oakland (Sunday Night)
15. New England
16. AT New Orleans
17. Cincinnati

Pittsburgh begins the final stretch of the season at home against the now Los Angeles Chargers. Pittsburgh has taken the last 4-of-5 against Philip Rivers and the Chargers, yet LA came away victorious the last time they visited Heinz Field in 2012. The Steelers wrap up their AFC West play the following week in Oakland, a place they haven’t won since 1995.

The final three games kickoff with a rematch of last year’s controversial game with the Patriots visiting Pittsburgh in Week 15. A Patriots-Steelers matchup is always good for high intensity, but given the likelihood of the stakes and recent history, the schedule makers just couldn’t pass this one up.

The Steelers end their traveling with a trip to New Orleans to take on Drew Brees for just the third time in his career as a Saint. New Orleans currently holds an all-time edge in the series at 8-7 vs Pittsburgh. The Steelers conclude the 2018 regular season with a home game against the Bengals, as playing a division rival in the finale has become highly favored by the league.

How will this schedule play out?

Judging by the eye test, this appears to be one of the more difficult schedules among the league. Going by the metrics, the Steelers are tied at 25th for the league’s toughest schedule. However, if you remove the two games with Cleveland, that ranking jumps up all the way to fourth toughest in the league.

Pittsburgh was fortunate to play Kansas City, New England, Tennessee and Los Angeles at home, as all the above are likely to be in playoff contention next season. However, road trips to Oakland, Jacksonville, Denver and New Orleans are all no easy tasks to get through. Given how Ben Roethlisberger plays on the road, this team will really need to buckle down when they stop off their plane.

Next: NFL Schedule 2018: Best game from each week

Bye Felicia, Hello Primetime

A Week 7 bye is right around the territory a team prefers them in. Not too early in the season, not too late either. It’s almost aligned in the middle, where the team can successfully make any needed adjustments and come back strong before the season really gets into crunch time. The Steelers will also play in primetime for five of their games this season, mirroring last year’s number of games under the lights as well.

This is not an easy schedule by any means of the imagination, but if there’s a team to do it, it’s the one in Pittsburgh.

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