After a 3-7 start in the NFL season, the Pittsburgh Steelers were clearly on the verge of elimination. In the middle of a quarterback controversy between Mitch Trubisky and rookie Kenny Pickett, this was supposed to be a year of transition. The playoffs semmed to be totally out of sight.
Furthermore, Mike Tomlin has never had a losing season during his 16-year career as a head coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers. 2022 looked like the year in which the amazing streak would end. Then, the team came back with five victories in their last six games to have a shot at the postseason. Just unbelievable.
Last week, the Steelers got a major win in a thriller against the Baltimore Ravens with another clutch performance of Kenny Pickett. They also got help thanks to losses by Miami and the Jets. So, prior to Week 18, the Pittsburgh Steelers are still in the hunt. Read here to find out what needs to happen for them to clinch a berth in the playoffs.
Can the Pittsburgh Steelers make the playoffs in the AFC?
The Pittsburgh Steelers can make the playoffs as a Wild Card team if they beat the Cleveland Browns at home in Week 18, the New England Patriots lose at Buffalo against the Bills and the Miami Dolphins lose with the New York Jets.
There's no scenario in which the Steelers control their destiny. They need to win and also need help from the Bills and the Jets. That's because Pittsburgh lost against New England and Miami during the regular season, so they don't have the tiebreaker with neither of these teams.
If the Steelers win, they will finish with a 9-8 record. However, there's no scenario in which Pittsburgh can win the AFC North. This means that if they make the postseason, the only option is the No.7 seed playing all the games on the road as the worst ranked Wild Card team.