Score more points than the other team. That’s how you win in football. And thank you Trent Dilfer for that information. As simple and obvious as it is, it’s a concept the Pittsburgh Steelers have struggled with for three years. Though they’ve found ways to eek out close victories, in 2021 and 2022, they finished with negative point differentials for the season, outscored by their opponent.
With just four games to go in 2023, they’re on track to do it again. Finishing three consecutive years with a negative point differential wouldn’t be a franchise first. But it’d be the first in a long time and signal the problems the Steelers face. The last time Pittsburgh went three years with a negative PD came during a four-year span, 1986-1989. Here’s how those seasons stacked up compared to the team’s current streak:
Steelers Point Differential
1986: -29 Points
1987: -14 Points
1988: -85 Points
1989: -61 Points
And today’s current streak.
2021: -55 Points
2022: -38 Points
2023: -40 Points
Given the struggle it is for Pittsburgh to score along with their inability to win by more than one possession, something that hasn’t happened in any of their seven victories this year, it’s doubtful they’ll make up that mark over the final four games. That would mean winning each game by an average of ten points. You might as well ask this team to fly to the moon.
To put things another way, the last time Pittsburgh held a positive point differential record past Week One was during the 2020 season, of which they started 11-0. Aside from Week One victories in 2021 and 2022, they’ve yet to be in the black past the first week at any point. That’s almost hard to believe.
Of course, it’s just one stat and the Steelers mentality is whether it’s by one point or a hundred, winning is winning. And they’re not wrong. In 2021 and 2022, they posted winning records. Consider this trend a regression to the mean, their “luck” catching up to them. Consistently winning with a negative PD is a tough place to be. This year, Pittsburgh is the only team above .500 with while in the red. Last year, only four teams did it, including Pittsburgh, who had the worst PD of those four teams (the others finished at -2, -3, and -6, compared to the Steelers’ -38).
The Steelers live on the edge. They have for years. This year, they’re finally falling off.
