The Pittsburgh Steelers needed the first month of the 2013 NFL season to collect their first win after starting out 0-4 and essentially ending the year before it even started. The team eventually picked up its pace during the final eight weeks of the season, but it never became a legitimate playoff threat after ending the year with an 8-8 record and a full game out of the final wild card spot in the AFC.

Pittsburgh has been quiet on the free-agency front and has not done much outside of signing running back LeGarrette Blount to a two-year deal worth $3.5 million. The team is probably looking toward the NFL Draft to restock its woefully-undermanned roster and may be content with taking another year to build a quality contender. It has already been four seasons since Pittsburgh's last Super Bowl appearance and six since its last win back in 2009.

The NFL has yet to release the actual dates and times for next season's schedule-they are expected to do that soon-but we do know who each team will be playing. Let's take a closer look at the Steelers' 2014 NFL schedule by starting with their home opponents and then moving on to the road games.

2014 Pittsburgh Steelers Opponents: Home Schedule

Baltimore Ravens: Pittsburgh first played the Ravens during Week 7 in 2013 and escaped with a close home victory. The squad had won its second straight game and was a three-point favorite at BookMaker. Prior to the matchup, the Steelers were 1-3 against the Ravens during the team's last four regular-season matchups.

Cincinnati Bengals: The Steelers did not host the Bengals until Week 15 of the regular season and pulled out a 10-point victory over their division rival. Pittsburgh scored 21 points in the first quarter and led 30-7 heading into the fourth, before allowing a meaningless comeback by the Bengals.

Cleveland Browns: Pittsburgh ended the regular season by hosting the Browns, and it was able to get an easy, if meaningless, 13-point win. The squad's season was over by that point, but the Steelers were able to complete the season sweep both straight up and against the spread.

Houston Texans: Houston ended up being the worst squad in the NFL last season with a 2-14 SU and 4-12 ATS record. The Texans, however, were able to cover three road games last season to finish with a 3-5 road ATS mark.

Indianapolis Colts: Andrew Luck and company will probably be perennial playoff contenders for years to come, and they should put another quality team on the field. Last season the squad ended the year 11-5 SU and 10-6 ATS record. The Colts were also a very good 5-3 ATS on the road last year.

Kansas City Chiefs: Kansas City's schedule might have played a role in the squad starting out the season with nine straight wins and ending the year with a very good 11-5 mark. The Chiefs ended 2013 with a 7-2 road ATS record (including the playoffs) and managed to cover spreads on the strength of their top-ranked defense.

New Orleans Saints: New Orleans has been known to struggle on the road during Drew Brees era, and last season was no exception. The team ended the year with a both a 3-5 road SU and ATS record. New Orleans' three road wins came against Tampa Bay, Atlanta and Chicago last season.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Tampa Bay started the 2013 season by losing eight straight games before finally getting a Week 10 victory over the Miami Dolphins on "Monday Night Football". The team finished with a 1-7 SU road record and a 2-6 ATS mark. The Buccaneers lost by an average of 10.6 points while on the road last season.

2014 Pittsburgh Steelers Opponents: Road Schedule

At Baltimore Ravens: Last season Pittsburgh lost a close road matchup to the Ravens during Week 13 when Ben Roethlisberger threw for 257 yards. The Steelers covered the game and ended up sweeping the ATS series for some bettors and ended up with a 2-4 SU record over the last three seasons.

At Cincinnati Bengals: Cincinnati took advantage of an unprepared and listless Steelers team during the second week of the season with a 20-10 victory. The squads ended up splitting the season series 1-1 both SU and ATS. Cincinnati also ended the season as the best home ATS team in the league with an 8-1 record (playoffs included)

At Cleveland Browns: The Steelers had Cleveland's number all year, wining both matchups during the second half of the season by a combined 29 points. Roethlisberger threw for 396 yards in both games as the Browns managed to catch a Pittsburgh squad that was rounding into form.

At Jacksonville Jaguars: Jacksonville ended the year with only one home win and earned three of its four victories on the road. The team also managed to cover only one spread at home after losing the first eight and last three games of the season.

At Tennessee Titans: Tennessee ended 2013 with a 1-6-1 home ATS record and 3-5 home SU record. The Titans managed to earn a seven-point victory over the Steelers during the opening week of the season and actually started out the year 3-1 before losing eight of its next 12 matchups.

At New York Jets: Pittsburgh won its first game of the season against the Jets during Week 6 of the season. Roethlisberger threw for 264 yard in the team's 19-6 victory, which sparked the team to win eight of its final 12 matchups for the year.

At Atlanta Falcons: Despite Atlanta's horrendous 4-12 SU record last season, the team managed a decent 4-4 home ATS record. Pittsburgh, on the other hand, was a decent road team with a 4-4 ATS record and may need to desperately get a win here, depending on how late in the season the matchup is scheduled.

At Carolina Panthers: Pittsburgh will play every team in the NFC South this season, with its toughest matchup being a road game against a very good Panthers squad. Last season Carolina ended the year with a 7-1 SU home record and 6-2-1 ATS record (playoffs included).

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Read more articles by George Monroy