Rich Eisen's Confession: Steelers' Consecutive Non-Losing Season Streak Is In Jeopardy For This 1 Brutal Reason

The Pittsburgh Steelers haven't won a playoff game since the 2016 season when they defeated the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional game. While the lack of recent playoff wins is incredibly frustrating for a team tied for the most Lombardi Trophies, they can be proud of the fact that Head Coach Mike Tomlin has never had a losing season, right?

The reality is that the narrative has worn very thin. It has become as unwelcome as that uncle who just won't go home after Thanksgiving dinner. While Tomlin himself never brags about it, the national media continues to tout it, and fans are borderline embarrassed by it being used as an excuse. 

One of the biggest Tomlin apologists in the world, Rich Eisen from the NFL Network, admits this might be the season Tomlin dips below .500. This is a huge change from his recent prediction that Tomlin would win NFL Coach of the Year just a few months ago. Eisen is worried about how Tomlin and newly named starting quarterback Russell Wilson will fare against the incredibly hard schedule they were given. 

On a recent episode of The Rich Eisen Show, Eisen's co-host Chris Brockman predicted that 2024 would be the year that "all good things come to an end," saying the Steelers would miss the playoffs and that Tomlin would finish under .500. Eisen has to respond whether that is an overreaction or not.   

"I have a lot of question marks with the offense," said Eisen. "If they go 5-4 in the first 10 weeks of the season, that's a problem. They need to be 6-4 because Week 11, it's on, like Donkey Kong. Their entire division schedule is from Week 11 on. Their only non-division opponents are Philadelphia and Kansas City."

Eisen pointed out that he had concerns about Wilson when he went to the Denver Broncos, and he felt like those concerns were shown to be valid. He isn't confident they can score enough to win during those first several weeks, which appear to be the easier part of their schedule. 

It is no secret that the regular season schedule looks tough. Brockman reminds listeners that the Steelers have a Christmas Day game and that anyone playing on Christmas has a short week. They play on Sunday, December 15th, the following Saturday, and the Wednesday after. That gauntlet of games includes the Philadelphia Eagles, Baltimore Ravens, and the Chiefs. 

"The games they have before it, is not simple," added Eisen. "Their opener at Atlanta is one of them. They got the Chargers at home, Dallas at home, the two New York teams... I don't think this is an overreaction, but I hope I'm wrong. The quarterback situation, there is a bit of a question mark. But there's an upside where it might not be as bad as we're making it out to be. They got to win two-thirds of their games going into that last stretch."

It certainly feels like the NFL had an agenda when developing the Steelers' 2024 schedule. They have some revenge games, with a new Offensive Coordinator, Arthur Smith, opening against his old team, the Atlanta Falcons, and Wilson returning to Denver in Week 2 to play the Broncos. Sharp Analytics said that the Steelers have the toughest 2024 schedule of any team. 

Steelers Might Be Motivated By Tough Schedule

Ask any Steelers fan, and they will tell you the team seems to perform best when being the underdog. This certainly isn't the first time the franchise has faced nearly impossible odds and been counted out by nearly everyone. 

In 2008, the Steelers also had the toughest schedule in the league, and former cornerback Bryant McFadden said all of that doubt and pressure helped the team excel. The Black and Gold went on to win the Super Bowl that year against the Arizona Cardinals. 

The players certainly seem confident. They feel that their time is now. According to T.J. Watt, they have all the necessary components to make it happen on both sides of the ball. 

What is your prediction for the Steelers' record for 2024? Click to comment below. 

#SteelerNation