3 things that went wrong for the Steelers during their bye week
By Tommy Jaggi
Potential AFC Wild Card rivals continue to improve their records
If all of Pittsburgh’s division rivals winning this week wasn’t bad enough, they also gained zero headroom when it comes to potential Wild Card rivals this year. In the event that the Steelers don’t come away with the best record in their division by the end of the season, the seeding in the Wild Card race is going to be very important.
Unfortunately, the Buffalo Bills (4-0) and the Indianapolis Colts (3-1) both pulled off victories in Week 4. With seven teams now slated to make the playoffs from each conference, Steelers fans shouldn’t be concerned about not making the tournament this year. I am confident that Pittsburgh will be a playoff team (perhaps only barring the loss of Ben Roethlisberger for the season).
However, which seed each team ends up with will be as important as ever. With only one team from each conference earning a first-round bye, Pittsburgh would much rather be the fifth seed in a game they could likely be favored in rather than winding up in the seventh seed and playing a team like Baltimore or Kansas City in the first round of the playoffs. It’s early in the season, but the Steelers will need to finish with a better record than the other potential AFC Wild Card teams.