The Steelers 2024 schedule has been revealed, and it's about as rough as anyone would have envisioned. We already knew the opponents Pittsburgh would be facing this year, but we didn't know how cruel the NFL was going to be to the Black and Gold this year.
While fans can be thankful that Pittsburgh doesn't have another early Week 6 bye (it will come in Week 9 this year), there's no shortage of things to be concerned about.
Steelers fans on social media jokingly asked what they did to make the league so upset with them. Pittsburgh's schedule is absolutely brutal this year. Here are the three biggest ways the NFL screwed the Steelers with their 2024 schedule.
Steelers have a brutal stretch from Week 11 to Week 18
I don't remember the last time I've seen a stretch of games to close the season as hard as this Beginning in Week 11, the Steelers will have all six divisional games against AFC North opponents -- playing the Bengals, Browns, and Ravens twice in the final eight weeks. Their only two non-divisional games will come on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles and at home on Christmas Day against the Super Bowl-defending Kansas City Chiefs.
All of these teams had a winning record in 2023. The worst of the bunch was the Cincinnati Bengals at 9-8, but they were missing QB Joe Burrow for 7 games and he wasn't healthy when he played. These teams combined for a record of 55-30 last year, and no team has a harder stretch to close out the 2024 season.
Steelers play 3 road games in September
Theoretically, if the Steelers have the league's hardest late-season stretch, it should mean that they have an easy slate of games early on. This won't necessarily be the case -- especially with how things line up on the Steelers' 2024 schedule.
Though their opponent list is easier to begin the year, Mike Tomlin's team will be on the road for three games in September (with just one home game in the opening month of the season). This makes must-win matchups against teams like the Falcons, Broncos, and Colts more challenging.
Steelers are on the road 4 times from Nov. 21 to Dec. 21
We talked about how brutal the late season stretch is for Pittsburgh, but the NFL really stuck it to the Steelers when they gave them four road games from November 21st to December 21st. During this stretch, the Steelers will be at Cleveland, at Cincinnati, at Philadelphia, and at Baltimore. the only thing breaking this up is a home game against the Browns in Week 14.
Still, this is a devastating stretch in which the Steelers will be living out of a suitcase for the most pivotal month of the NFL season. Talk about a tough break.