Following their 29-10 Christmas Day loss to Kansas City, the Steelers have now lost three games in a row, all by double-digit margins. With those defeats have, understandably, come much doubt in their postseason readiness, especially with there being the potential for each of the recent assailants to cross paths with them again, depending on how the playoffs unfold.
However, this is nonetheless one of the more 'comfortable' situations Pittsburgh has been in as of late. Despite the Steelers being more of the 'squeak in at the buzzer' type over these past few seasons, their being represented in this season’s bracket is something they were promised before their current loss streak had even picked up.
It is with that in mind that I am still open to seeing Pittsburgh through, refusing to shrug off its presence in the playoff just yet... but, that comes with one condition: They have to be able to contain Cincinnati.
Steelers must trample the Bengals in the season finale
The Bengals come to town for Pittsburgh’s final ride of the regular season, and under the command of star quarterback Joe Burrow, their offense has been objectively sound. Few have learned that quite like the Steelers have, as the last time the AFC North rivals faced off, Pittsburgh had to have its best offensive performance in years to win the shootout by a single score.
In other words, the Pittsburgh defense absolutely stunk against Cincy, and with it also having stunk in all of the losses that have come since then, I’d certainly call that the biggest change that needs to be seen before the playoffs begin.
'Oh, but Austin! It’s not exactly like the offense has been playing perfectly! It needs to make some changes too!' I agree, but when healthy and not making careless mistakes, asking Pittsburgh’s offense to keep up with guys like the Eagles, Ravens, and even Chiefs is not an insurmountable task, but it is when those guys are able to move the ball up and down the field with ease.
The fact that we’re saying that about a team that is so developed and driven on the defensive side of the ball is what makes it all the less excusable of a problem and all the more necessary of one to fix—and again, there aren’t many teams more fitting to fix it against than the Bengals.
If the Steelers can stifle their offense, I firmly believe they can stifle anyone else’s and remain as an underdog worth watching out for in the Lombardi hunt. But if they can't, and the Bengals keep the trend of opponents running wild on Pittsburgh alive, then I'd concede that this will probably end up being yet another year where yinzers are happy their guys made it to the dance and nothing more.