Saturday night went great for the Pittsburgh Steelers as their home win over the Cincinnati Bengals was not only needed, but it also helped increase their playoff chances ever so slightly. While The Steelers didn’t get any help from the Los Angeles Chargers in their Saturday night game against the Buffalo Bills, Sunday’s NFL action mostly wound up going in their favor when it comes to their playoff chances.
In the early games on Sunday, the Cleveland Browns beat the Houston Texans and the Atlanta Falcons beat the Indianapolis Colts. Those outcomes dropped both the Texans and Colts to 8-7 on the season, which is the same record that the Steelers have. If that weren’t enough, the Jacksonville Jaguars lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in late afternoon Sunday action and that was yet another positive outcome when it comes to the Steelers. The Jaguars also now sit at 8-7 after that loss.
In other late Sunday afternoon action, one of the Steelers’ paths to the playoffs got closed thanks to the Miami Dolphins beating the Dallas Cowboys. That win locked up a playoff spot for the Dolphins. In Sunday night action the New England Patriots beat the Denver Broncos and that also was great news for the Steelers in the playoff race.
So, where does this leave the Steelers entering Monday? Well, they are currently the ninth seed in the AFC. They are behind the Colts and Texans because they lost to each of those teams this season and thus lose out in the head-to-head tiebreaker category.
According to the playoff simulator run by the New York Times, the Steelers’ playoff chances currently sit at 13 percent as Christmas Eve comes to a close. That percentage can increase slightly depending on the outcomes of the Monday games, which includes three AFC teams playing. NFL.com has the Steelers at a 17 percent chance of making the playoffs as of Sunday night.
Obviously, the Steelers best shot at making the playoffs at this point would center around them winning their two final games against the Seattle Seahawks and Baltimore Ravens, both of which are on the road. The Texans and Colts will face off against each other in Week 18, so odds are good that one of them will suffer at least one more loss in their final two games. Quite honestly, it would be helpful to the Steelers if one or both the of the Colts and Texans lost their Week 17 games, which are against the Las Vegas Raiders and Tennessee Titans, respectively.
At least one more loss by the Jaguars would be beneficial for the Steelers in the final two weeks and especially if Pittsburgh wins their final two games. As for the Bills, who currently sit at 9-6, it would be nice to see them lose their final two games as well. Those two games are against the Patriots and Dolphins.
While the Browns have yet to officially clinch a playoff spot, that seems like a foregone conclusion at this point as they currently sit with a 10-5 record.
According to the aforementioned playoff simulator, the Steelers playoff chances would be roughly 92 percent if they win their next two games. That percentage, however, only accounts for their final two regular season games and no other outcomes in Week 17 and Week 18. They certainly do not control their own playoff destiny at this point and that has been the case now for the last several weeks.
