Get ready Steeler Nation – it looks like the Black and Gold could be taking on the World Champions to start the 2015 season.
Less than 24 ours after the New England Patriots beat the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl, people already are asking who will New England host in the annual NFL Kickoff Game three days before the rest of the teams open their season.
That answer seems like an obvious one – the Steelers.
Yes, it’s not by any means out of the question to think that the Steelers will be in New England to play Tom Brady and the Pats in that Thursday night opener.
Here’s what NFL.com had to say about that very subject today – stating that the Steelers vs Patriots is the #1 most likely game to start 2015.
1. Steelers at Patriots
One former dynasty versus the modern-day titans. The historical storylines jump off the page. The on-field matchup would be just as great. Sure there is the Tom Brady-Ben Roethlisberger quarterback narrative network TV loves, but this one is better than that. The Steelers were one of the hottest teams down the stretch last year before Le’Veon Bell’s injury hurt their playoff chances. If Darrelle Revis returns to New England, we’d get the highly entertaining Antonio Brown-Revis faceoff.
The fun matchups go much deeper, but we’ll get into that when the schedule comes out. This would easily be my pick for opening night.
The game is set for Thursday, September 10th. If you’re wondering who else the Pats will play next year at home to see the options the NFL has, here’s the rest of the list – Buffalo Bills, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins.
The Steelers actually did open the season at New England vs the Pats in an AFC Championship Game rematch of the season before in 2001. New England won that game easily 30-14.
The last time the Steelers played in New England, it was a train wreck, as the defense was torched for 432 passing yards and four TD’s by Tom Brady in a Pats 55-31 win back on November 3rd 2013.
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DaveB.
February 2, 2015 at 5:51 pm
Will someone please explain to me when the inevitable conversation comes up of the greatest quarterbacks of all time , the national media acts as if Terry Bradshaw never existed ? Now that Tom Brady has won his fourth , the national media along with the boys at ESPN are labeling him as arguably the greatest of all time . Is he a great quarterback ? Yes . He has the hardware and the rings to back it up , but the greatest ever ? Im sorry , I dont see it . What kills me worse than fingernails sliding across a blackboard is when the greatest ever conversation comes up , you hear the names Elway and Marino . If youre judging the player on how many Super Bowl championships he led his team to , then the formula is much simpler . Marino a great regular season player went to one Super Bowl and lost . Thats it . Next , John Elway . A great regular season player who eventually got his two championships towards the end of his career . Finally , if you listen to the national media , its Joe Montana with four , Terry with his four and now Tom Brady . With all that being said , Terry Bradshaw is the last one that ever enters the conversation and its mind boggling . I dont want to hear the argument that Bradshaw had two Hall of Fame wide receivers to throw to . Did it help ? Sure . However , their has never been a receiver in the history of the sport who could throw the ball to himself and then run twenty yards down field to catch the pass . Four for four with two MVP’S , all in a span of six years . Im sorry , it doesnt get much better than that . However , you’ll consistently hear the national media bring up a guy like Marino that never won a single Super Bowl . Its rediculous and at the end of the day , its unfair .
DrGeorge
February 2, 2015 at 8:13 pm
I agree with you, DaveB, that Bradshaw does get slighted when the media begins slinging hyperbole about the “greatest” QBs. They write to stir controversy and pump ratings, of course. As a consequence, they favor current QBs over the greats of the past because half their readers weren’t alive when Sammy Baugh, Bart Starr, Johnny Unitas, and Otto Graham and their ilk dominated the game. And it is unfair to judge players across eras because of all the changes in the rules, training regimens, schedules, and even the shape of the football. Because of the NFL rule changes since 1970 putting pass defenders at a great disadvantage, recent QBs (even mediocre ones) have much better passing statistics than Bradshaw and more games in which to pump their stats, which works against all the old QBs as well.
But to get to your point, the number of Super Bowl rings a QB owns has a lot to do with the quality of the team around him, especially the O-line and defense. The Steelers first two Super Bowls were won more by the defense than Bradshaw and the offense; for that reason, I think Bradshaw’s first two SB victories are discounted in some quarters — much as Mark Rypien, Trent Dilfer and Brad Johnson are discounted as contributing to the Redskins, Ravens, and Tampa Bay Super Bowls.
All we can really evaluate is how well a QB played in his era, and in his era, Bradshaw was one of the best.
DaveB.
February 3, 2015 at 6:19 am
Checkout the article by Joe Starkey on the Pittsburgh Tribune review website titled Bradshaws Legacy Under appreciated . It pretty much says it all .