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2015 Pittsburgh Steelers Schedule | Season Handicapping Picks

2015 NFL Football- Steelers Analysis

After taking the 2014 AFC North Title, the Pittsburgh Steelers come in with a target on their backs as they look to defend their belt.

Steelers Odds

Steelers Odds to Win the 2016 Super Bowl: 30/1
Steelers Odds to Win the 2015-16 AFC North: +220
Steelers Odds to Win the 2015-16 AFC Conference: 15/1
Steelers Over/Under 2015 Win Total: 8.5
***2015 BONUSES***
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Pittsburgh had one of the best passing attacks in 2014 behind QB Ben Roethlisberger and he hopes to repeat his performances in the 2015 season. The Steelers had the 2nd best passing offense in the NFL with 301.6 yards a game.

Their downfall and reason for early exit in the playoffs though was their defense. The defense ranked 18th overall and 27th in defending the pass (253.6 yards a game).

For Pittsburgh we’ll look at their 2015 schedule game by game and break down each one.

Week 1: Thursday, September 10, at New England 8:30 PM

How often do you hear somebody lucking out because they get to play New England in Week 1 of the regular season? That’s the case for the Steelers as they travel to the Northeast for NBC Thursday Night football.

New England will be without QB Tom Brady, who is suspended for the first four games.

Pittsburgh still will have a tough time with the crowd, but no Tom Brady = 1-0 for the Steelers.

Week 2: Sunday, September 20, vs San Francisco 1:00 PM

Things won’t be as easy in their home opener as they welcome in Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco 49ers.

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The 49ers defense is always a hand full for teams, especially passing ones so Pittsburgh will have a tougher time moving the ball here.

However, the crowd will be loud as usual inside Heinz Field and Pittsburgh should be able to use that momentum to ride themselves to a 2-0 start.

Week 3: Sunday, September 27, at St. Louis 1:00 PM 

St. Louis caused some of the top teams in the NFL problems down the stretch last season. They proved they were no pushover and beat the likes of the Seahawks, 49ers, and Broncos all at home.

After a blockbuster move, the Rams acquired Nick Foles and now have a solidified, proven starting QB. The question for St. Louis is how will he adapt to the slower paced offense.

It’s tough to see Foles being in full form just into Week 3 with a completely different offensive style. Pittsburgh should move to 3-0 here.

Week 4: Thursday, October 1 vs. Baltimore 8:25 PM

The Steelers will be licking their chops to get a chance at the team that eliminated them in 2014.

Baltimore eliminated the Steelers in the AFC Wild Card game last season and you have to believe the Steelers want another shot at their arch Rivals.

With the short week, this game will be tough to battle through and Pittsburgh will struggle with some tired legs.

This could go either way, but Pittsburgh ultimately falls at home to go to 3-1.

Week 5: Monday, October 12 at San Diego 8:30 PM

Monday Night Football will be in San Diego for Week 5 and the Chargers and Phillip Rivers love the spotlight.

The couple extra days off in between their Week 4 and Week 5 games will be helpful, but winning a Monday Night game on the road is tough.

Pittsburgh can’t slow up the Chargers and Rivers and fall to 3-2 on the season.

Week 6: Sunday, October 18 vs. Arizona 1:00 PM

The Cardinals battle injuries throughout the entire season last year. They made the playoffs because of their strong start, but couldn’t generate any offense with essentially their 4th string QB under center.

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Pittsburgh should have no problem here as they improve to 4-2.

Week 7: Sunday, October 25, at Kansas City 1:00 PM

The Chiefs are a tough team to beat at home.

In 2014, Kansas City went 6-2 at home and beat some of the best teams in football.

Pittsburgh will fall here and drop to 4-3.

Week 8: Sunday, November 1, vs. Cincinnati 1:00 PM

The reason the Steelers won the AFC North last season was because they beat divisional opponents. Thats always a key and they always have success against the Bengals.

Pittsburgh wins at home in Week 8 and goes to 5-3.

Week 9: Sunday, November 8 vs. Oakland 1:00 PM

Oakland is a pretty bad team. Put them inside Heinz Field against the Steelers and they really stand no chance.

Pittsburgh wins easily to move to 6-3.

Week 10: Sunday, November 15 vs. Cleveland 1:00 PM

To cap off their 3 game home stand they get a chance at their rivals from Cleveland.

The Browns may have things figured out offensively by Week 10, but for right now they have no QB. Josh McCown was signed in the offseason and he isn’t anything to write home about.

Pittsburgh wins 3 straight home games going into the bye week and improves to 7-3.

Week 11: BYE WEEK

Week 12: Sunday, November 29 at Seattle 4:25 PM

Going into Seattle for anybody is a tough task. The place is loud and the defense is swarming.

Pittsburgh comes out a little flat form the bye week too and falls to 7-4.

Week 13: Sunday, December 6 vs. Indianapolis 8:30 PM

Sunday Night Football is back in Pittsburgh and the Steelers get a chance at Andrew Luck and one of the best offenses in the league.

The Colts and Steelers played to a 51-34 (!!) contest last year and this one could be similar with the national spotlight on them.

Pittsburgh grinds a win out and goes to 8-4.

Week 14: Sunday, December 13 at Cincinnati 1:00 PM

Road games are tough, especially in the division.

Assuming this game is important for the AFC North race, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati will be scrappy and hard hitting.

The Bengals get the advantage here because of the home field and the Steelers fall to 8-5.

Week 15: Sunday, December 20 vs. Denver 1:00 PM

The final home game for Pittsburgh in 2015 will be against Peyton Manning and the high flying attack of the Broncos.

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Manning was questioning whether or not he should retire prior to this season, so assuming his fatigue is a major factor here, Pittsburgh grabs a win and goes to 9-5.

Week 16: Sunday, December 27 at Baltimore 8:30 PM

This game will mark 2 straight road divisional games to finish the season.

Like the Bengals game in Week 14, assume this one will have major AFC North implications.

Pittsburgh will need this one if they hope to defend their AFC North title and will come away with a clutch Sunday Night win and go to 10-5.

Week 17: Sunday, January 3 at Cleveland 1:00 PM

Likely, Cleveland will be trying to play spoiler as they are typically eliminated by this time. With the game being in Cleveland and a chance to ruin the Steelers playoff hopes, Cleveland will bring their A game.

However, Pittsburgh will use their experience to grab a win here and finish up 11-5.

An 11-5 record will likely get them the division title once again. If the Bengals or Ravens do in fact finish with a better record, Pittsburgh will easily lock up a Wild Card.

Regardless, the Steelers will be in the Playoffs for a 2nd straight season.

More NFL Teams Schedule / Pick Posts

 
Arizona Cardinals Seattle Seahawks New York Jets
New York Giants San Francisco 49ers Buffalo Bills
St. Louis Rams Carolina Panthers New England Patriots
Tampa Bay Bucs New Orleans Saints Indianapolis Colts
Atlanta Falcons Kansas City Chiefs Tennessee Titans
San Diego Chargers Miami Dolphins Cleveland Browns
Green Bay Packers Washington Redskins Cincinnati Bengals
Philadelphia Eagles Dallas Cowboys Baltimore Ravens
Oakland Raiders Detroit Lions Pittsburgh Steelers
Denver Broncos Minnesota Vikings Chicago Bears
Jacksonville Jaguars Houston Texans

The 2015 NFL futures betting season is right around the corner! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting.

CappersPicks.com has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well.

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By Tony M

Tony is new to Cappers Picks and has been betting on sports since the first day he turned 18. He is a 22 year old Cleveland native who lives and breathes Indians baseball. His dream is to be part of a championship celebration at the corner of Carnegie and Ontario.