Devin Bush is batting 1.000 with his predictions this season.
Ahead of the team's Week 6 Sunday Night Football matchup against the Chargers, I asked Bush when he'd get his first career defensive touchdown. He nearly snagged a pick-six in the team's preseason opener against the Buccaneers, then he almost returned a fumble all the way against the Seahawks during Week 2 of the regular season. It was right there. So I asked him when it'd actually happen.
"This week. Sunday," Bush replied with precisely no hesitation.
We all know how that turned out:
I had to ask Bush Saturday at the Rooney Complex if he remembered calling his shot.
"After the fact, I did," Bush said. "I think I saw somebody write it, maybe your article."
As hilarious as it is to picture Bush sitting in his study, going full Nostradamus and mapping out his future plans while puffing on a corncob pipe, what was he really going to say? Of course he is confident in his abilities, and he's going to bet on himself whenever asked. But, I wondered, was there anything more to that? When you make a prediction at that level, does it make you feel more locked in on game day?
"Yeah, I did [feel locked in]," Bush was telling me. "You just kind of understand what plays you can expect coming your way and what you can do with those plays if you recognize those formations. It's all about the preparation, what you think you can get away with and getting a feel for what can happen."
So the defensive touchdown is in the bag. He has two interceptions on the year and a sack. There aren't too many "firsts" left for Bush just six games into his professional career. Still, I had to run it back. Can he go two-for-two with his predictions?
Here's what he envisions for the Steelers' Week 8 Monday Night Football showdown vs. the Dolphins:
"It's going to be a good game, going to be a fun game," Bush said. "This is what I predict: We're going to have about two picks and a forced fumble. And Terrell Edmunds [is] gonna take one back to the crib. Watch."
OK, now it's getting freaky.
Because earlier in the week — Wednesday, to be exact — I was talking to Edmunds at his locker, and we were discussing his improvements in coverage during his second year in the league. He's minimizing mistakes, but the splash — interceptions, fumbles, passes defended — still aren't showing up on the stats sheet at the rate he'd want. But:
"It's [the splash] is going to come," Edmunds was quick to add when I brought it all up. "I feel as if, I've been having that good feeling all week. I have a feeling it may come this week, so let's do it."
Bush couldn't have known about this conversation, yet both he and Edmunds are feeling it strolling into Monday night — and for good reason.
The 0-6 Dolphins rank near the bottom of the league in every category, and Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is 0-6 in his career against the Steelers, will get the start. Fitzpatrick's thrown 193 career touchdowns against 153 interceptions in his career — a near-equal ratio that looks more in place in the 1970s than in today's NFL.
Elite talents like Drew Brees, for reference, throw more than double the amount of touchdowns as they do interceptions. Brees has 522 career touchdowns and 235 interceptions, while Aaron Rodgers is even better, throwing 351 touchdowns against just 82 picks. Even Andy Dalton boasts a near-two-to-one clip at 196 touchdowns vs. 112 interceptions.
Point is: Fitzpatrick turns the ball over. And these Dolphins likely will be playing from behind, so the stage is set for Edmunds to deliver.
And if he does, it's on the record: Bush called it ... again.
