2018: Steelers lose 4 of last 6 to miss the playoffs
The Steelers rebounded from an 0-1-1 start to win seven of their next eight and had a 7-2-1 record after winning 20-16 at Jacksonville on Nov. 18. However, Pittsburgh then lost three straight and four of its last six to miss the playoffs with a 9-6-1 overall record. Each of the last seven games were decided by one score or less.
Included in those final six games was a 24-17 loss at Denver, a team quarterbacked by Case Keenum that entered the contest with a 4-6 record. The next week, the Steelers blew a 23-7 halftime lead in a 33-30 loss at home to the 8-3 Chargers. Pittsburgh allowed the 2-10 Raiders to go on an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive to score the winning points with just 21 seconds remaining in a 24-21 loss in Oakland.
Of course, the Steelers kept their hopes alive the following week with an improbable 17-10 win at home over the Patriots. It was the last time New England would lose that season, as Brady guided his team to five straight wins after that, including a 13-3 win over the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl.
The Steelers fell to 8-6-1 the next week, falling 31-28 in a tough battle in New Orleans. Pittsburgh held the ball and a 28-24 lead with 4:11 remaining in the game. Tomlin inexplicably went for it on 4th and 5 at his the Steelers 42-yard line, and Roosevelt Nix was stopped short of the first down on a running play. Drew Brees and company then went 46 yards on 10 plays to score the winning touchdown with 1:28 remaining.
Pittsburgh fell one win short of a trip to the playoffs as the AFC North Champion, as Baltimore captured that with its 10-6 overall record.