The Pittsburgh Steelers entered their bye week at 6-2. That was quite encouraging, but most people said that the back half of the schedule would show whether the Steelers were pretenders or contenders.
After all, they had to face the surprising Washington Commanders before kicking off their AFC North schedule (with games against the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs thrown in for good measure). So, most people were saying the Steelers were a good story but would shortly fall back to earth.
Yet the Steelers won their first two games coming out of the bye. That included Sunday’s 18-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens to solidify their spot atop the AFC North. Are the Steelers truly contenders in the AFC at 8-2?
“Not only did the Steelers defeat the Ravens and take control of the AFC North in Sunday’s win, they also sent a warning sign to the Chiefs and Bills they are a contender to represent the conference in the Super Bowl…” wrote Jeff Kerr for CBSSports.com in his Week 11 overreactions vs reality article. “Their offense has been a top-10 unit since Russell Wilson became a starting quarterback. Pittsburgh is fifth in offensive points per game (25.5) and third in time of possession (33:30) since Wilson has taken over, controlling the football and finding ways to score points. The top-10 offense has helped the Steelers improve to 5-0 against teams currently with winning records. Beating the good teams are why the Steelers are amongst the AFC contenders, and should be in the conversation with the Bills and Chiefs to reach the Super Bowl out of the AFC.”
Since taking over against the New York Jets, Russell Wilson has proven to be a difference-maker for the offense. Sunday’s win did mark the first game Wilson failed to throw a touchdown in his four starts for Pittsburgh. But overall, the Steelers are a much better offensive team with him under center.
And that 5-0 mark against teams with winning records? The Steelers have three more games against teams with winning records, including a rematch with the Ravens in Baltimore. The Chiefs are 9-1 after losing to the Buffalo Bills and the Philadelphia Eagles are 8-2. The Steelers will be facing a tall task to keep that record perfect, but they’ve passed those tests so far.
And with all that said, the Steelers control their destiny for the top spot in the AFC. If they win out, they will have the number one seed to start the playoffs. What more could they ask for at this point in the season?
