NFL Record Predictions: Where do the Redskins end up in the pack?

LANDOVER, MD - OCTOBER 15: Matthew Ioannidis #98 of the Washington Redskins celebrates a sack on quarterback Brian Hoyer #2 of the San Francisco 49ers (not pictured) during the first quarter at FedExField on October 15, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - OCTOBER 15: Matthew Ioannidis #98 of the Washington Redskins celebrates a sack on quarterback Brian Hoyer #2 of the San Francisco 49ers (not pictured) during the first quarter at FedExField on October 15, 2017 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /
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DENVER, CO – NOVEMBER 25: Head caoch Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Denver Broncos at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on November 25, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – NOVEMBER 25: Head caoch Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Denver Broncos at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on November 25, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /

Pittsburgh Steelers

Last year, I predicted this same record for the Steelers, and predicted that while the team was talented, and while their coach, Mike Tomlin, was an elite motivator, their trademark gaffes in crucial situations would deprive them of the playoff berth they’d been so accustomed to enjoying throughout the twenty-first century.

The record wasn’t as bad as I’d predicted, partly because the Browns couldn’t quite flip the switch until midseason. But the second part of the prediction came to pass; the Steelers didn’t win the game they needed to, and it cost them a playoff bid.

In 2019, I expect the same situational flaws to mar the Steelers campaign. They’ll show that they do have a good, not great, amount of talent at the skill positions, and their trenches will be solid. But the secondary is still a major concern, and without as much dynamic ability as years past, the Steelers might not be able to transcend their irreconcilable flaws. With the rise of the Browns and the Ravens, the Steelers fall, sending their future into fog.

Pittsburgh Steelers Record Prediction: 7-9