Anyone who visits the NFL blogs on a regular basis knows I’m a huge Steeler fan. I’m also glad to see the renewed rivalry as the loyal Browns fans deserve it and it’s good for the NFL. The Steelers/Browns games I watched as a youngster were incredible and those games helped turn me into the football fanatic that I am today.
That being said, the Browns/Steelers rivalry officially returned in 07.While the first game didn’t go well for the Browns, they made a QB change that would energize the offense and lead to the nail biter of a second game. The Browns finished 10-6 and tragically missed the playoffs. I would have liked to see the Browns play the Chargers in that wild card game as I believe it might have been an upset.
That brings us to the 2008 season. The Browns have been very busy and I would like to carefully examine the off season moves between the two teams.
1) The Browns signed D-Lineman Shaun Rogers from the Lions. Shaun is a legitimate run stuffer and unless he OD’s on smores, he instantly makes the Browns D-Line better.
The Steelers signed Mewelde Moore from the Vikes. Mewelde is a nice signing if he stays healthy and will help on special teams as well as be an effective third down back.
Advantage Browns.
2) The Browns signed D-Lineman Corey Williams from the Packers. Williams is 6’ 4” and lists at 320. He has averaged 7 sacks for the last two years. He is coming from a 4-3 defense however, he will probably play left end for the Browns.
The Steelers signed Keyaron Fox from the Kansas City Chiefs. Keyaron was a backup linebacker and special team’s player while in Kansas City. I definitely think he will help improve the struggling special teams unit of the Steelers. That being said, Advantage Browns.
3) The Browns added depth to there offensive line by signing Rex Hadnot formerly of the Miami Dolphins. Hadnot Brings 55 starts in five years at the guard and center positions to the Browns. While the Steelers are just about capped out right now, this would have been a much needed addition.
The Steelers had a visit from New England safety Eugene Wilson……..
ADVANTAGE BROWNS
4) The Browns signed wide receiver Donte Stallworth from the New England Patriots to a long term deal. If the Browns can get Donte’s head in the game full time, he is a legitimate number two receiver to pair with Braylon and Winslow at TE. Add Jurevicius to the mix to go with that ever improving O line and you have just made an already potent offense even more scary.
The Steelers linebacker James Harrison was arrested.
ADVANTAGE BROWNS
The Browns resigned some key people(Anderson,Sorenson,Friedman) and have a very capable backup waiting in the wings. If you don’t think Brady can play this position folks, you are sadly mistaken. If Derek would have asked for much more money, the Browns would have stock piled picks trading Anderson and went with Brady.
The Steelers resigned Kirschke(D-line) and Frazier(LB) while this doesn’t hurt my beloved Black and Gold, this does not have the impact of the Browns changes in personnel.
ADVANTAGE BROWNS
This leads me to my 2008 predictions for my Steelers. I believe the defense will play very well and our young secondary will be more consistant in 08. Woodley will be an upgrade over the fading Haggans at Linebacker and Timmons will contribute also at Linebacker.
Maybe even more than I expected(Thanks Mr. Harrison)
The offensive line will be better than last year. You heard me correctly. Colon will be better in his second year on the job and we also had some injury issues in 07 on the O- line. We will miss Faneca however, HE IS NOT the player he once was. The line will protect Ben better this year however, it won’t be dominating. The Steeler front office will draft multiple times at the O line position this year.
Special teams will be better with the additions that were made and it’s about time in that area.
The Steelers will finish 10-6 and make the playoffs……………as a wild card team.This years schedule is absolutely brutal.
As much as this pains me to say, the Browns will go 11-5 or 12-4 this year with the incredible additions that were made to the team and win the Division.The Steeler offense will be potent and the defense will be in the top five however, just not as dominating as in the past.
Good luck to my Steelers and I hope I’m wrong however, my unbiased opinion enables me to realize there is a team from Cleveland that not only will make the playoffs, but has a good chance of being in the AFC Championship game.
It is great to have the rivalry back, isn't it? The Ravens are easy to hate because of their personalities, but you just don't feel the tradition.
Yeah, it looks like the Browns have made some major upgrades this offseason. But the offseason is just that, not the season. They don't pick until the 4th round. I'm not convinced Derek Anderson is a star and I still think Jamal Lewis is one sprained ankle away from destroying their running game. K2 is having his 4th knee surgery. They had their injuries early in the year, Steelers had them late. You're right Woodley is big upgrade, get Aaron Smith and Willie Parker healthy. Troy was injured from October through the end of the year. And we need Santonio Holmes to go an entire season without leg problems. Faneca is not as dominant as he once was and the line can be tweaked to be acceptable. Need better play from the center. They don't need to waste their entire draft on O-linemen. Need depth on D-line and cb/safety also. Looking forward to the draft.
BTW, Where the H-E-L-L is CleRocks anyway? Haven't seen him spewing his filth in months.
Good post, but think they will do better than 10/6, if Ben can release a litle quicker and Bruce quits his bs plays like last season. I see Mahan NOT at Center so.... hopefully he will be at Guard, supposed to be good there.
moseby....shhhh don't get clerocks started. Fuzz
I don't think Clerocks showed up until right before preseason last year. I believe he will appear very soon.
Fuzzboss
Thanks for stopping by. I think the Steelers will be fine as we have a lot of talent overall. I just think that barring a rash of injuries, the Browns added a ton of experienced talent.
I hope I'm wrong however, my gut feel has been pretty good to me. I also forgot to mention that I have concerns with Arians play calling.
Last edited by sixfigurefan2 on March 13th at 2:37 PM.
I hope you are wrong too. I think thepeople have this image of the Steelers stinkin' up the joint because that's what we did last time we came out. I think the main reason was no OLine, but we also had no Willie Parker. Once he gets back, I think we will be a better team again.
It seems we do better when we are a wild card, though, so I wouldn't mind it.
Thanks for stopping by. I don't think the Steelers will stink up the joint. While we made an early exit from the playoffs, I like how the Steelers adjusted to the Jags running game and were competitive to the end.
I might be selling us a little short, but I think we have an impending buzz saw right in our division.
The Steelers will have the toughest schedule in the NFL period in 2008. Playing the NFC East or the AFC South doesn't faze the Steelers.
Despite this, the Steelers will still make the playoffs.
I think the Ravens and the Bengals will get swept.
If we are lucky, we will split the series with the Browns. I think the Texans,Titans,Eagles,Redskins are definitely beatable.
The losses will probably come from the Browns,Giants,Chargers,Cowboys,Jags ,Patriots,Colts
The Steelers are more than capable of beating a few of these teams though and I think a 10-6 record is a safe bet.
Calling the Browns laughable is proof that people haven't been paying attention to what they have been building recently.
Last edited by sixfigurefan2 on March 13th at 8:24 PM.
The reason Pittsburgh has the toughest schedule IS because they're playing the AFC south & NFC east, the two best divisions in the NFL. They also play NE & SD since they won the divison last year. This may not faze Pittsburgh, but the losses will add up.
The AFC north will only send the division winner to the playoffs, no wildcard. Just like this year. If Pittsburgh makes the playoffs it better win it's division.
I called Cleveland laughable because you stated they would win 12 to 11 games. Cleveland will not get 10 wins. Cleveland may have added pieces and improved, but thier schedule also improved. A good season for Cleveland would be getting close to what they accomplished last year. Cleveland will not exceed last years performance.
Like I stated before the division winner will be 9-7.
QCisco,
I can agree that it is a stretch to say Cleveland will be 12-4. 11-5? I don't know, but let's not get ahead of ourselves. We're all looking at this as it reflects "on paper". It may very well play out that the AFC South and NFC East aren't the two strongest divisions this year. They certainly were last year. But it isn't a given. My prediction is that the AFC North division winner will be at least 10-6 and could very well have two teams that make the AFC playoffs. Plus I think you might be getting ahead of yourself if you think the Cowboys have automatic wins playing at Pittsburgh and at Cleveland. Their talent can match Cowboys.
While I understand your love for those two divisions, I'm going to list the Browns 2008 schedule. We can debate forever, however I'm going to list how I think their 2008 games could go.
Ravens at home = Win
Bengals at home = Win
Steelers at home = Win
Texans at home = Win
Colts at home = loss
Cowboys at home = Win
Giants at home = loss
Broncos at home = Win
Ravens away = Win
Bengals away = Win
Steelers away = Loss
Jaguars away = Loss
Titans away = Win
Eagles away = Win
Redskins away = Win
Bills away = Win
While a few of these games are highly debate able,
they have a shot at a record similar to this.
Last edited by sixfigurefan2 on March 14th at 9:32 PM.
Cleveland goes 5-1 in the AFC north, losing to Pittsburgh. 1-3 vs the AFC south, losing to Indianapolis, Jacksonville, and Tennessee. 1-3 vs the NFC east, losing to Dallas, Philadelphia, and NY. They split with Denver & Buffalo. Cleveland finishes 8-8 or at best 9-7.
Pittsburgh goes 5-1 in the AFC north, losing to Cleveland. 2-2 vs the AFC south, losing to Indianapolis and Jacksonville. 2-2 vs the NFC east, losing to Philadelphia and Washington. 0-2 vs NE & SD. Pittsburgh finishes with a 9-7 or at best 10-6.
I'll give you Dallas while I'm at it.
Dallas goes 4-2 vs NFC east, losing to NY and Philadelphia. 3-1 vs NFC west, losing to Arizona. 3-1 vs AFC north, losing to Pittsburgh. They split with GB & TB. Dallas finishes 11-5 or 12-4 at best.
I realize everyone is giving predictions based on talent perception. My take is that it's unrealistic to assume anything because injuries. players playing above expectations and players playing below expectations will completely change the dynamic. I'm not yet convinced that Tennessee and San Diego are going to be contenders next year, just based on 2007. Cleveland and Pittsburgh could be anywhere from 7-9 to 12-4. Cincy & Baltimore could be 6-10 to 11-5. Jacksonville could be 8-8 to 12-4. Dallas could be from 8-8 to 12-4. NY, Philly and Washington could be from 6-10 to 11-5. The Patriots are the only "lock" for me to win 12+ games because of their overall schedule, unless Brady got hurt. Even Indy could end up with only 9 wins. That's why the games are so much fun.
I'm a die hard Steeler fan and always have been. I do pride myself in the ability to look at my team through unbiased eyes.
I enjoy talking with other fans about upcoming games and discussing facts with just about anyone. I also have to admit I'd rather tell people who consider a discussion as "your team BLEEP s" to please take a detour from me and talk to Clerocks.
I'm originally from Hempstead Long Island and have found myself living in Colorado for quite sometime now. The only downside to living out here is the Denver Post actually thinks Mark Kiszla is a sports writer. lol
Anyway....... are you ready for some football?
