A couple of weeks ago the Pittsburgh Steelers were 4-1 and starting to feel like a lock for the playoffs with every other AFC North team having a losing record at the time.
Two weeks later, the Steelers still only have four wins. But the Ravens and Bengals have each crawled to within a game or two of them, and since the Steelers still have three combined matchups against those two, things could get dicey. At this point, CBS Sports’ Ryan Wilson thinks the Steelers just aren’t ready for a playoff race.
“Yeah, they’ve been exposed the past few weeks, they are pretenders,” Wilson said Friday on CBS Sports HQ. “Aaron Rodgers isn’t the problem, it turns out. The offense isn’t the problem, it’s the defense, which has struggled to stop anyone. If that remains the case, given their schedule, and the Ravens’ schedule, which is much easier, they’re gonna be on the outside looking in when playoff time comes around.”
Part of the reason the loss to Cincinnati was so disappointing was the schedule that loomed after it. The Steelers had to play Green Bay afterward and last Sunday, they didn’t seem to be on the same level as a true contending team. Now, they have to face the 7-1 Indianapolis Colts on Sunday. Then they travel across the country to play a dangerous Los Angeles Chargers team before facing the Bengals again at home.
It doesn’t get much easier after. There are some winnable games over the final stretch, but the Steelers still have to play Buffalo and then Baltimore twice.
The good news is that the Steelers have an offense that seems capable of winning in the playoffs. Aaron Rodgers has decades of postseason experience. The offense in general has been the better side of the ball this year. The bad news is that the defense has been nowhere near as good as it was expected to be.
It’s hard to win in the NFL when you can’t stop anybody. The Steelers gave up 30 points to the New York Jets, to the Bengals and 40-year old QB Joe Flacco, and now the Packers. It’s just hard to win games when every matchup becomes a shootout. And considering how many AFC quarterbacks are playing at a high level right now, it’s concerning.
At the end of the day, there is reason behind Wilson’s opinion. The Steelers do have an impressive win over New England, which is now 6-2. But the rest of their wins are against unimpressive teams. They include the 1-7 Jets, the 3-4 Vikings and the 2-6 Browns. And the first two came down to the wire. They’ve also been outclassed by two solid playoff contenders in Seattle and Green Bay.
There is still time to turn it around. And a statement home victory against the Colts this week would be a good start. But it’s going to have to start soon if the Steelers are going to make a run for the playoffs.
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