Steelers need big second half to make playoffs

The Pittsburgh Steelers hit the mid point of the season with a 4-4 record. They’ve looked good when they could but have had issues with keeping or getting players on the field. To get to the wild card you’re most likely going to need at least a 10-6 record. It’s been done with a 9-7 but you can’t rely on it. So the Steelers need to go 6-2 in the second half to make the playoffs.

Like I said, the Steelers have faced some obstacles. And as I indicated, most of those involve injury or suspension.

The Steelers have had some problems on the injury front. On defense they’ve lost Will Allen, Stephon Tuitt, and Ryan Shazier to name just a few, for multiple games. The defense has improved despite that but you can’t help but think they’d be better if they were all there at once.

On the offense the most obvious one was Ben Roethlisberger’s absence for multiple games with a knee injury. It was a rough stretch but the Steeler broke even at 2-2. The injury bug is back and biting on the offense line though with Maurkice Pouncey potentially missing the whole season and Kelvin Beachum out for the rest of it.

The suspensions have been on the offensive side of the ball. Le’Veon Bell missed the first 2 games due to suspension and Martavis Bryant missed the first 4 due to suspension and another due to injury. Both are strong offensive weapons.

The offense had big expectations and has certainly been explosive at points but the injuries on offense have certainly held the offense and the Steelers team that was to rely on them so much back.

How’s this for a bummer? That Bengals game will be the only game in the 2015 season where Ben Roethlisberger, Martavis Bryant, and Le’Veon Bell played together.

Regardless, the time for excuses are up. Not that the Steelers have been making excuses but the point is the Steelers do need to win despite everything.

Marcus Gilbert said of the injuries, according to Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “It’s something you can’t control. It’s part of football. Injuries do happen. We have to try to move past these injuries and find a way to overcome our struggles. Injuries do happen, but we have to find a way to overcome them. It has to be the next-man-up mentality. In order for us to get where we want to go, we have to move past this and make plays. It’s a new challenge.”

As it stands, the Steelers will be without Le’Veon Bell for the rest of the season. This is obviously a big blow as he is a pro bowl running back who has often been called the best in the league. Losing a player like Bell is always a big blow.

We saw last year what a big blow that was during the playoffs when Bell went out with an injury to the same knee. The circumstances are different this time around.

First, the defense is improved. They still give up a decent amount of yards. They aren’t perfect. But they keep the points down and that what counts. They’ve been able to make a lot of big plays and gotten more pressure on the quarterback.

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They have Shazier back. Joining him back on the field this Sunday against the Raiders will be Will Allen and Stephon Tuitt, whose absence was felt more than many expected. They’re better than last year, but if they can stay on the field they’ll continue improving.

The second thing that makes this year different than last year is that it won’t be Dri Archer and Ben Tate on a week’s practice backing up Bell. The Steelers signed DeAngelo Williams in the offseason, mostly to start the first two games and be around in case something like last year happened again. It did, but earlier in the season.

Through the first two games Williams was leading the AFC in rushing with 204 yards and was effective in the red zone. After Bell went down Williams broke off a 55 yard run, his longest of the season. He has proven an effective back and a smart signing.

Tomlin has confidence in him, according to the Associated Press, Tomlin saying, “Right now, we are going to rally around DeAngelo Williams. He did a great job for us the first couple weeks this season when Le’Veon was out. We will get back with him being the feature guy in our backfield, and we will supplement the others around him. He’s an established, capable guy who we know can deliver. There’s a great deal of comfort in knowing his capabilities.”

Another big problem was kicking. The Steelers seemed to have picked a winner, though the fourth time around. The injury to Sean Suisham set off a chain reaction. Garrett Hartley was signed and injured in the preseason. Then the Josh Scobee thing, the dark times. But that appears to be settled with Chris Boswell. He’s currently 8-8 in field goals and 6-6 in extra points. Kicking is a thing you can take for granted.

There were big expectations coming into the season for the Steelers. A lot has gotten in the way, whether its injury, suspension, or kicking, or the secondary, or the hardest schedule in the NFL. Now is the time, from here on, where the Steelers determine if they’re a playoff team, if they want a chance to make a run for it. It’s definitely doable.

The Steelers have the Raiders (4-3) next. The Browns (2-7) are after that followed by the bye week. Two winnable home games to get them to 8-4. Then the Seahawks (4-4) away, the Colts (3-5) at home, the Bengals (8-0) away, the Broncos (7-0) at home, the Ravens (2-6) away, and the Browns away.

That’s four home, four away. Four games are against teams that are below .500. Two more are at or barely above .500. The other two are actually pretty good. But if the Steelers win the six very winnable games that will put them at 10-6 and in good position to get to most likely make the playoffs.

There is a very doable path to the Steelers making the playoffs. It is entirely within their control, most likely. But they have to beat the beatables. If they lose to any of the six beatables then they almost have to beat either the Bengals or the Broncos. They did do well against the Bengals but it’s not the position you want to be in.

Next: Steelers release Dri Archer and sign Jacoby Jones

So the next two weeks are critical wins to get. They have to win out to the bye week and then go .500 through the rest of the season and they’ll have a strong case to be in the playoffs. So if this isn’t to be the season the Steelers lost to injury, tomorrow’s game against the Raiders is almost essential.