Before this season began, not many people thought the Pittsburgh Steelers would sit comfortably atop the AFC North after three weeks. More people actually thought they would finish at the bottom of their division. However, they’ve proved the doubters wrong so far. Pete Prisco of CBS Sports believes Mike Tomlin deserves a lot of credit for this success.
“Mike Tomlin’s done a great job with this team,” Prisco said Tuesday on CBS Sports HQ. “Mike Tomlin, if we didn’t already know, is one of the best coaches this league has ever seen, and we see it year in and year out. This team is not supposed to be this good. They haven’t beaten a lot of good teams, let’s be real, but the fact [is] that they’re winning these games.”
Saying the Steelers aren’t supposed to be this good is subjective. Prisco is one of the people who thought they would be at the bottom of their division, so he doesn’t think they should be this good, but these are the results the Steelers expected.
They’ve played the exact style of football that they wanted to, running the ball well, playing incredible defense, and having their quarterback not make huge mistakes. That’s the way their team is built. They’ve been more physical than their opponents, and that’s led to winning games.
The difference is that the rest of the AFC North hasn’t been as impressive as people like Prisco thought it would be. The Cincinnati Bengals have yet to win a game, the Cleveland Browns look like he same disaster they’ve been for years, and the Baltimore Ravens have started slow. The Steelers have been the most consistent team in the division.
The Steelers win ugly, but they still win. They may not end the season as the best team in the division, but at this point, they’re in the driver’s seat. Prisco is right to give credit to Tomlin credit for that too.
The Steelers are winning as a result of their philosophy, and that’s a direct result of Tomlin being their coach. He wants to see the Steelers win these close games. He wants to grind away at an opposing team’s will. That’s exactly what the Steelers have done.
Prisco saying the Steelers haven’t played good teams is subjective too. Three weeks into the season, definitively labeling teams good or bad is tough. The Atlanta Falcons looked bad against the Steelers, but they also beat the Philadelphia Eagles. The Los Angeles Chargers were undefeated before they played the Steelers. Are they bad, or did the Steelers make them look bad?
There are still a lot of games left to play this season, so the Steelers can’t take their foot off the gas. They want to keep a firm hold on the division title. They’re going to lose eventually, but the important part will be how they respond to that loss. That will help dictate their ability to win the division.
