# John Middlekauff: Middlekauff previews the NFL opener, picking Seattle to beat New England at home while expecting the Patriots to land in the 9-10 win range and miss the playoffs, taking Pittsburgh as his third AFC playoff team over Baltimore and New England, standing by Seattle as a Super Bowl participant, ranking the three head coaches involved, and describing Pittsburgh's receivers as a collection of No. 2s. **Claimed:** Sep 9, 2026 **Pundit:** John Middlekauff — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/pundits/john-middlekauff **Outlet:** The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast) — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/outlets/the-herd-with-colin-cowherd-podcast **How it reached us:** said on air or in an interview **Original:** https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/44c6e42b-f663-4492-888d-ae330034680f/f7389291-fcbf-4926-8f79-b4c0009e0c24/audio.mp3?in_playlist=bf391792-153e-41b3-9d3d-ae3300346ad8 7 checkable claims — 2 depth chart calls, 1 conference champion, 1 game outcome pick, 1 head coach ranking, 1 playoff pick and 1 season win total — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 5 players and teams, each linked to their own record. 1 of 7 have settled so far, averaging 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess at the same calls. Of the 2 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the room on 1 and below it on 1. > I expect Seattle to win *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Seattle Seahawks to win** - Kind: Game Outcome Picks · About: Seattle Seahawks - Verdict: scored 100 out of 100, against 100 for a naive guess - **Pittsburgh Steelers to make the playoffs** - Kind: Playoff Picks · About: Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Michael Pittman to be 2nd on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Michael Pittman, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **So I would rank those McCarthy, Vrabel, and then Minter's just an unknown with a major unknown at play caller.** - Kind: Head Coach Rankings - Verdict: not settled yet - **DK Metcalf to be 2nd on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **New England Patriots to finish with ? wins** - Kind: Season Win Totals · About: New England Patriots - Verdict: not settled yet - **Seattle Seahawks to reach the Super Bowl** - Kind: Conference Champions · About: Seattle Seahawks - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Seattle Seahawks — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/seahawks - Pittsburgh Steelers — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/steelers - Michael Pittman — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/michael-pittman - DK Metcalf — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/players/dk-metcalf - New England Patriots — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/nfl/teams/patriots ## What others said about the same people - Tyler Sullivan on Drew Lock: In an unsigned Week 2 odds roundup, the piece states that with Sam Darnold hurt, Drew Lock will likely start at quarterback for Seattle against Arizona. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/8a14b5e6-066b-457f-b409-a3ddbd512aca (scored 0) - Michael Hanich on Bud Clark: Hanich suggests Nick Emmanwori may miss Week 1 after ankle surgery, and that Noah Igbinoghene is making a strong case to be the Seahawks' Week 1 starting nickel, with Bud Clark also possibly stepping into a starting role if Emmanwori is out. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/c15b8321-a10e-421f-8076-039ca96a05a8 (scored 0) - Jason McIntyre on Baker Mayfield: Filling in for Colin Cowherd, McIntyre argued the 49ers' window is closed amid a brutal injury list and record travel, floated a Bijan Robinson trade to the Bears, predicted the Lions can win the NFC North, doubted Atlanta is even a playoff team, said Baker Mayfield's Tampa run ends after this season, and delivered a top-10 quarterback ranking. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/3fa10b83-c7a3-489f-a011-76f2eb991e81 (scored 0) - Evan Silva on Pittsburgh Steelers: In his 2020 fantasy defense/special teams rankings, Silva puts the Steelers first, the 49ers second and the Ravens third, citing pass rush, favorable early schedules and game scripts. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/180b1036-60e5-494b-9b4d-90b5dc3d6528 (scored 100) - Jordan Dajani on Pittsburgh Steelers: Dajani expects the Steelers to comfortably beat the Falcons in Week 1, arguing Atlanta's quarterback situation under Tua Tagovailoa is a mess; he also picks the Vikings to beat the Packers in a low-scoring game. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/aa3d04bb-6a56-4202-9f05-36e5bda5d05f (scored 100) - Chad Millman on Pittsburgh Steelers: Millman backed several week one sides outright: Miami to beat the Raiders straight up, the Jets over the Titans, an underdog money line parlay of Houston and the Giants, and a favorites money line parlay of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Detroit. He also stands by his preseason take that Drake Maye is a top-five NFL quarterback. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/de991e27-ec15-4c6e-ad88-b55bdaea8665 (scored 100) ## More depth chart calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Ralph Vacchiano on Tua Tagovailoa: Vacchiano ranks all 32 NFL teams entering the 2026 season, with the Rams first and Dolphins last. He also flags the Giants as a potential surprise team with a top-10 defense, and notes Deshaun Watson won Cleveland's QB job while Tua Tagovailoa starts Week 1 in Atlanta. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/6f782be9-64d3-47cf-b054-6566e14194d6 (scored 0) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Kyler Murray: Fitzmaurice touts Kyler Murray as a value QB who will start Week 1 for Minnesota, Tyler Shough as the Saints' undisputed starter, and Juwan Johnson and Terrance Ferguson as late-round tight end targets. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/70a7844a-2fb6-44d7-814f-30ec9fbcc26d (scored 100) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Kyler Murray: Fitzmaurice expects Kyler Murray to be Minnesota's Week 1 starter and calls him one of the better quarterback values in 2026 drafts; he also views Jordan Love as a top-10 real-life quarterback but only a QB2 in fantasy. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/0653fc24-437c-4aba-89ee-f1f417e1983d (scored 100) - Steven Ruiz on Michael Penix Jr.: In a retrospective tiering of all 32 starting quarterbacks, Ruiz treats Michael Penix Jr. as the Falcons' Week 1 starter over Kirk Cousins, whom he places in his lowest tier. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/968b3764-11ef-41b5-a370-ff570b3219d1 (scored 0) - Mike Florio on Shedeur Sanders: Florio reports the Browns will start Deshaun Watson in Week 1 but predicts Shedeur Sanders will likely be the starting quarterback by Week 3. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/cf6258b2-b55f-4f50-84f9-24269a5a006a (scored 0) - Nathan Jahnke on Jalen Tolbert: PFF's preseason fantasy recap makes a large number of depth-chart, role and fantasy-value calls across the league, including Chig Okonkwo as a top sleeper tight end, Tre Tucker as the Raiders' top receiver, and various backfield hierarchies. — https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/opinions/760054fd-7815-4b86-a9e3-bc9bdb0a730b (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.thegoodapps.co/corrections?pundit=john-middlekauff