4 teams that stand in Steelers way of making the playoffs

Cincinnati Bengals

If the Ravens aren’t able to finish strong down the stretch, it could be the Bengals — not the Steelers — who are the beneficiaries. Joe Burrow’s team has hit a bit of a cold patch, but they are still half a game ahead of the Steelers in the AFC North.

Unfortunately, Pittsburgh already played both games against the Bengals this year, so the Steelers don’t have a chance to make this a two-game swing at once with a win over their division rivals. Because of this, they are held at the mercy of Cincinnati, and if the Bengals win the same amount of games as Pittsburgh over the final four, they will be ahead of them in the seeding.

Sadly, there’s nothing the Steelers can do about this, and they obviously need to try to win all four games down the stretch. Even winning three of the four could prove to be catastrophic if the Bengals are able to do the same.

Getting swept by Cincinnati this year really hurt this team. The Bengals have games against the Broncos, Ravens, Chiefs, and Browns remaining, and I can see them finishing 3-1.