Pittsburgh Steelers secure first-round bye in win over Texans

The Pittsburgh Steelers kept it very professional and secured their first-round playoff bye with a 34-6 win over the Houston Texans on Christmas Day.

It was exactly the game the Steelers were hoping for as they went into Houston on the holiday and came out with an easy win to secure their playoff bye. Now, they’ll try to finish the Cleveland Brown’s season 0-16 and hope with a little help that they can send the AFC through Pittsburgh.

Even without Antonio Brown, this offense seemed unstoppable. With plenty of stars returning to action, the Steelers appeared to be exactly where they left off before their Week 15 loss to the Patriots.

You could tell Pittsburgh had something to prove in this one. No one believes they should’ve lost to New England last week, including this team. So, they went on the road on Christmas Day and came out with their most impressive win of the season.

The Steelers now have to worry about themselves and a few other teams next week to determine their playoff seed and opponent. Right now, they’ll play as the second seed, but with a win over the Browns and a loss by the Patriots, Pittsburgh will climb right back to the top of the conference.

Sending the AFC through Heinz Field to the Super Bowl would be huge for this team. As one of the most dominant home teams in the NFL, the Steelers would love to have their fanbase around them when they take on teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars and New England Patriots.

Next: Two different stories of Brown's return

Week 17 is worth the watch now for the Steelers. Plenty of scoreboards will need to be paid attention to. If everything can work out, it could go a long way in sending Pittsburgh back to the promise land, or forcing them to go back through Foxborough for another year.