As the season has marched on, the Pittsburgh Steelers have quietly crept up the NFL power rankings. These days, it's not surprising to see Mike Tomlin's team bordering on being a top-five squad in the eyes of the national media.
In Week 14, the Steelers squashed the Browns under their feet and officially eliminated Cleveland from playoff contention (not that they ever stood a chance to fight back for a postseason spot this year). But this win wasn't enough to convince some of the biggest media platforms to move Pittsburgh up in their power rankings.
Surprisingly, their win even had the opposite effect in some of the latest power rankings. Here's a look at how the media views the Pittsburgh Steelers heading into Week 15.
NFL Nation, ESPN: 6th
The staff at ESPN ranked the Steelers as the fifth-best team in the league a week ago, and they have since fallen to sixth in the power rankings. This had more to do with the Vikings than the Steelers. Minnesota crushed the Atlanta Falcons in a 42-21 victory in Week 14, and ESPN elected to swap the Steelers and Vikings in their updated power rankings.
Eric Edholm, NFL.com: 6th
While ESPN has the Steelers dropping one spot, NFL.com moves them from seventh to sixth. Eric Edholm notes why Pittsburgh is a Super Bowl contender this season with a well-rounded roster and players to lean on like Chris Boswell, T.J. Watt, Cameron Heyward, and Russell Wilson.
Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: 6th
Pete Prisco of CBS Sports also has the Steelers moving up one spot this week — swapping places with the 9-4 Green Bay Packers. Prisco mentions how the Steelers keep on winning games. Their Week 14 victory over the Browns marked their seventh win in their last eight contests. They get the real test this week against the Eagles.
Conor Orr, Sports Illustrated: 5th
Sports Illustrated shows the most love to the Pittsburgh Steelers this week — bumping Tomlin's team into the top five. This comes after Conor Orr placed them sixth in the power rankings last week. Orr notes game-changing plays in Pittsburgh's contest against Cleveland as the reason why this team is threatening.
Nate Davis, USA Today: 7th
Like ESPN, USA Today's power rankings have the Steelers dropping one spot from sixth to seventh. Even with a two-score win over the Browns and a Week 14 loss from the Packers, this wasn't enough to leapfrog Green Bay. Nate Davis has the Minnesota Vikings jumping ahead of Pittsburgh this week in his updated power rankings.