The Pittsburgh Steelers' bid for perfection ended Monday with a 23-17 loss to the Washington Football Team at Heinz Field.
Pittsburgh had been 11-0 to start the 2020 season, raising questions over whether Ben Roethlisberger and Co. could run the table en route to Super Bowl LV.
Colin Cowherd hasn't been too high on the Steelers amid their success, though, as the FOX Sports 1 host believes he's seen this movie before.
"I'm watching the Pittsburgh Steelers and you know what they are? They're the Patriots last year," Cowherd said Tuesday. "Patriots got off to this 8-0 start and we're like, 'Wow.' And then all of a sudden, the games got closer and they were asking more of (Tom) Brady and the results weren't good."
The Patriots suffered their first hiccup in Week 9 last season against the Baltimore Ravens. New England then went 4-4 down the stretch before losing to the Tennessee Titans in the AFC wild-card round.
It was a disappointing sendoff for Brady, who subsequently signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in free agency. And Cowherd expects the Steelers to follow suit and flop in this season's playoffs if they continue to lean too heavily on Roethlisberger.
"Weeks 11 through 13, they're the Patriots. I can't unsee it," Cowherd said. "And then all of a sudden you looked at the Patriots, and they weren't getting blown out at the end, and Pittsburgh won't get blown out. (But) they were losing close games to Houston, they lost a close game to Kansas City, they lost a close game to Miami, and then they got one-and-done'd in the playoffs by Tennessee.
"(The Steelers) are the Patriots last year. This is exactly what New England was. We paid them so much respect because of the brand and the name and Big Ben and Brady and the coach. They're just not dynamic."
The Steelers still have an excellent defense, as well as several intriguing offensive weapons. So, perhaps Cowherd is premature in his criticism.
Then again, the road to the Super Bowl won't be easy, especially if Pittsburgh fails to lock up the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye. And the Steelers definitely have flaws that could be exposed by other contenders.
"Similar, when (Rob Gronkowski) left, New England really struggled in the pass game despite Brady. And since Le'Veon Bell has left the Steelers, do you know what they are in rushing? 31st one year, 29th the next year and 29th the following year," Cowherd said. "They're the same team.
" ... This is the Patriots last year. It's the same thing. We gave them so much credit, then you look back on the 8-0 Patriots and you're like, 'What were the impressive wins?' And you look back at the Steelers, and they had one or two, but you're like, 'It's a bunch of stuff over the Jags and Cowboys and a big win over the Bengals?' "
The Steelers will travel to face the Buffalo Bills this Sunday night in Week 14.
