It’s been full steam ahead for the Pittsburgh Steelers this preseason, setting the NFL on fire as they’ve rattled off three wins in a row for a perfect preseason slate.
Heading into the regular season, Pittsburgh still ranks near the middle of the pack in the league when it comes to their playoff aspirations. According to ESPN Analytics, the Pittsburgh Steelers currently have a 34.4% chance to make the NFL Playoffs. This puts them 20th in the NFL in playoff percentage, behind the likes of the Browns, Dolphins, Chargers, Jets, Ravens, Jaguars, Bills, Bengals, and Chiefs in the AFC.
According to the ESPN Football Power Index, the Steelers are projected to finish with a 9-8 record, the same record they had at the conclusion of the 2022 season. Pittsburgh was also given a 12.2% chance to win the AFC North, a 15.3% chance to make the Divisional Round of the Playoffs, a 5.9% chance to make the AFC Title Game, a 2.2% chance to make it to the Super Bowl, and a 0.9% chance to take home another Lombardi at the end of the season.
Based on ESPN’s FPI, Pittsburgh isn’t slated to make the playoffs in 2023 with nine teams in the AFC given a better chance to clinch a playoff berth based on their analytics. This may be hard to stomach for many Steelers fans as the 2023 team looks night-and-day better than last year’s team, especially on the offensive side of the football. They tore apart the first-team defense of the Bills on their first two drives of the second preseason game, having RB Jaylen Warren rip of 62-yard touchdown run while QB Kenny Pickett displayed elite accuracy and ball placement on his TD pass to TE Pat Freiermuth.
While Pittsburgh probably shouldn’t be considered a favorite for the AFC at this juncture, they should be considered a likely playoff team given all the improvements they’ve made on the roster this offseason and the notable progression of several key players we’ve seen this preseason.
We must see Pittsburgh replicate that same preseason success in the regular season, but this team shouldn’t be finishing with the same record as last year and around the same standing in the AFC based on the well-rounded team they are bringing to the table this season. While Pittsburgh may need to pump the breaks a little bit on the preseason hype, ESPN’s FBI projections seem like a bit of a slight to a team that looks ready to contend in 2023.
