What are the Steelers' chances?

Today we introduce a new feature to The Steelyard. Instead of issuing a prediction prior to each game (as many fan sites/blogs do), each week we will estimate Pittsburgh's chances of winning its upcoming game (on a percentage basis). Essentially, we will be estimating the likelihood of a Steelers victory, as opposed to issuing an arbitrary prediction of the final score. As the season unfolds we may also provide analysis of the upcoming game/opponent and examine matchups that might be exploited.

For week one we'll take a minimalistic approach, however. Factoring in the absence of starting QB Ben Roethlisberger and a slight Heinz Field advantage we give the Steelers a 55 percent chance of defeating the Miami Dolphins.

Feel free to comment on this week's estimate, and be sure to return next week for our analysis of the Jacksonville Jaguars.