As much as I would like to see them move on from Tomlin, they aren't going to do it. They can't even fire assistant coaches, they just let their contracts end. They are too cheap to pay Tomlin 10 mil and then pay his assistants and then pay a new coach and his assistants.
I was thinkin yesterday before the game, how will the national media spin Tomlin getting 8 wins which means a losing season (not including the tie scenario). And my thought was they would say he has 8+ wins in every season as a coach, and leave it at that. But with the loss yesterday, and with Pickett maybe out, I believe that won't be an issue. A real possibility is them losing out and finishing 5-12. Even if they do, reviewing other team's schedules and the tie breakers, I believe the highest they can get up to in the draft is 4th, more likely would be 7th. Technically they can still finish with the worst record but I'm looking at it from a likely scenario point of view. In this scenario, Carolina, Cleveland and LV beat the Steelers and finish with a better record.
Houston, Chicago and Denver are locked into a lesser record than the Steelers. Denver can go 2-2 down the stretch and they would still get a higher pick due their lower strength of schedule. And Chicago's schedule down the stretch is brutal. This is how I see them finishing out.
Houston: 1-15-1
Chicago: 3-14
Denver: 4-13/5-12
LA Rams need to go 2-2 down the stretch to finish 6-11, so it's not crazy. Rams play GB, Denver, LA Chargers and Seattle. I figure they lose all games down the stretch or win one, which means the Lions get the 3rd or 4th pick, lol. and finish 4-13/5-12.
NO plays Atlanta, Cleveland, Philly and Carolina. So other than Philly, not murderers row. And Philly could clinch the #1 seed by winning the next two weeks. So, Atlanta beats NO, thus Atlanta finishes with a better record than the Steelers. Let's say 7-10. NO finishes the season 1-3 and thus has final record of 5-12. NO, finishes with a lesser record due to their lower strength of schedule.
Arizona plays Denver, Tampa Bay, Atlanta and San Francisco. Feels like they can win two of those games. If San Fran wins this week against Seattle they clinch the NFC West. But, eh let's say they don't, Arizona finishes 5-12.
Indianapolis, the great Jeff Saturday experiment. They play Minnesota, LA Chargers, NY Giants and Houston. The first three don't look good. But if they beat Houston, they finish with a better record. And I think they win one of the games for Coach Saturday, probably Houston. Thus they finish 5-11-1.
Green Bay's strength of schedule is decently higher than the Steelers. And if they lose, the SoS gets bigger, if they win just one game, they finish with a better record. Let's say they go 6-11.
Jacksonville is still battling for their division. If they go 2-1 down the stretch and Tennessee goes 1-2 then they play for the AFC South against Tennessee on Week 17. Either way, they only need to win one game to finish with a better record than the Steelers. And I say they do it. Let's say 7-10/8-9.
So the final standings for the scenario:
- Houston 1-15-1
- Chicago 3-14
- Denver 4-13/5-12 (Seattle pick)
- LA Rams 4-13/5-12 (Detroit pick)
- New Orleans 5-12
- Arizona 5-12
- Pittsburgh 5-12
- Indy 5-11-1
Even is Denver, LA Rams, New Orleans, Arizona and Pittsburgh end up tied at 5-12. The Steelers almost certainly finish with a better record due to SoS. The two key culprits are Philly and Buffalo. If they drop some games down the stretch, then it may be possible to jump up.
