The Kenny Pickett era has begun in Pittsburgh and the 24-year-old first-round pick is being thrown right into the fire.
Pro Football Focus says the Steelers have the hardest remaining strength of schedule in the league.
That includes the next four games before their bye.
It starts this Sunday against Josh Allen and the Super Bowl favorite Buffalo Bills, coming off a come from behind win against the Baltimore Ravens.
The 3-1 Bills are tied for first in the AFC East with the Miami Dolphins (we’ll get to them shortly).
The Bills are currently a two touchdown favorite against the heavy underdog Steelers.
The week after that, Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers come to Acrisure Stadium.
The Bucs are coming off a 41-31 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday Night but still have Super Bowl aspirations at 2-2, good enough to be tied for first in the NFC South.
On October 23, the Steelers head to Miami and take on the currently 3-1 Dolphins. The Dolphins lost their first game of the season against the Bengals this past weekend. They’re currently without their starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who is currently out with a concussion, but could be back for the Steelers game.
The string of difficult games finally come to an end on October 30 against the current unbeaten Eagles in Philadelphia, another team with Super Bowl hopes.
The Steelers could very realistically be 1-7 at the bye.
They then have a home game against the New Orleans Saints and then host the Bangles, who they barely beat in Week One.
After that, they still have two games against the Ravens and face the Browns, who will likely this time be with quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Pickett may have given the Steelers a spark, but even if he plays well, the Steelers could have their worst season of the century.