The NFL Speculator: Warning! Are The Steelers About To Collapse?

First off let me say I am not a Steelers fan.

But I know there are probably thousands of Steeler fans on BR and I also know that this article will likely provoke some angry response like, "How dare you say the Steelers are gonna collapse!"

Well, I didn't say they will collapse, but if you, the Steeler fan who has been a beneficiary of about forty years of excellence think that the Steelers will always be excellent, I suggest you need to prepare for that excellence maybe coming to an end.

Patriots fans have already had to come to grips with a decline. In 2009, Tom Brady was most definitely NOT what he was in 2007! I am convinced that your average 49er fan still hasn't gotten over life without Montana, Rice, and Young. And if you really wanna go back even farther, some Dolphins fans haven't gotten over losing Csonka to the WFL ending their dynasty-on-the-make in the early 70s, and clearly Jets fans haven't gotten over Joe Namath, seeing as how they think Mark Sanchez is the next one.

And also, Steeler fan, do any of you remember that before the dynasty started to happen in 1972, your team was a doormat?

For how long, you might ask?

About forty years, that's how long!

And how long have the Steelers been (except for a couple of years in the 80s when you had what's-his-name at QB when you could have had Dan Marino!) either a dynasty, a powerhouse, or at least in contention for the playoffs?

About forty years, that's how long!

Some writer here in his or her preseason prediction for 2009 claimed the Steelers wouldn't repeat as Super Bowl champions and not only that, claimed that the Steelers were probably on their last legs as a playoff contender for a while. Steeler fans, of course, balked in their comments.

But let's see what happened. In 2009, the Steelers went from 12-4 to 9-7 but missed the playoffs, and even more importantly fell from first to third place behind the Bengals (who woulda thunk it?) and the Ravens.

Many will blame an injury to Troy Polamalu, but how many times this year was Big Ben on his back? Folks, since losing Alan Faneca to the Jets, the Steelers OL has not been great, and I can think of a dozen teams that have better run and pass blocking than your team.

And now, with new allegations about Ben Roethlisberger's sexual assault in Georgia a year after allegations of sex assualt in Vegas--and this just in, Santonio Holmes in trouble as well for similar allegations--and Pete King of Sports Illustrated (here: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/peter_king/03/28/bradford/3.html) saying Pittsburgh needs to prepare for life after Ben, I agree. The Steelers need to prepare for what looks like could be a fall from grace that will continue.

However, I think Steeler fans have to prepare for a continuing fall from grace even moreso. You all have had it too good for too long, so prepare.