The Pittsburgh Steelers are primed to go on a run in the playoffs, but the team will first need to fight for the best seed possible in the AFC. The NFL didn't do Pittsburgh any favors when drawing up their schedule as they gave the organization three extremely difficult games within a span of just 10 days. The Steelers are currently preparing to take on the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 15, then they will take on the Baltimore Ravens, and then the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day. This is all happening within 10 days, which is just unsafe.
Pittsburgh currently has a 10-3 record and a firm lead in the AFC North, and they are behind the Chiefs and the Buffalo Bills as they sit in third place in the AFC. Their standing within the conference and the division can change a lot over the next three contests thanks to the NFL making the backend of Pittsburgh's schedule beyond challenging. Head Coach Mike Tomlin made an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show on Thursday, and the upcoming schedule was a topic of discussion. McAfee criticized the NFL for making it difficult on the Steelers.
"Commissioner Goodell trying to punish the Steel City, I don't like that at all," said McAfee. "We'll talk s**t for you."
Obviously Tomlin was fairly nonchalant while discussing the league's scheduling. As a head coach, he can't criticize the league too much, but the cast of the show was willing to step up for Tomlin and the Steelers when it came to criticizing the schedule makers. Tomlin had a message for the show after this was said.
"And please do a good job of it," Tomlin said.
Tomlin clearly doesn't appreciate the difficult end to the regular season for Pittsburgh. Aside from the games themselves being difficult, the short time span in which they come in makes some question how much the league truly values player safety. All three of these games will be extremely intense as every team is considered a Super Bowl contender, so playing all three games in a 10-day span is a hard task in itself.
Tomlin isn't one to make excuses, so it is fair to assume that he will have his team prepared and ready to go in all three of these games. It will be difficult to go 3-0 over this stretch, in fact there is a real possibility that Pittsburgh could go winless over this timespan. This stretch of games got even tougher when it got announced that George Pickens would miss a decent chunk of time with a hamstring injury. Getting through this stretch of games healthy is definitely a priority for Pittsburgh, especially with the playoffs right around the corner.
Steelers Have The Opportunity To Seal Their Fate Over Final Stretch Of Games
There are a ton of playoff implications for the Steelers in the coming weeks. If they can escape Philadelphia with a win, they will clinch a playoff spot. They can also clinch a playoff spot if both of the Indianapolis Colts and Miami Dolphins lose, or tie, in Week 15. The Eagles are riding a nine-game winning streak, and if the Steelers can break that, they will be in good shape.
After the Eagles, Pittsburgh will travel to Baltimore. If they can take down the Ravens for the second time this season, they will clinch the division, and in turn a home playoff game. Pittsburgh can also increase their odds of securing the one-seed in the AFC if they can beat the Chiefs in Week 17.
Kansas City only has one loss on the year, so Pittsburgh would need them to lose an additional game or two while also winning out on the season. It doesn't seem probable, but it is possible.
