In case you’ve forgotten, Cameron Heyward is here to remind you that the Steelers are a playoff-bound team. Even with their miserable recent fortunes against some of the league’s best teams, they stamped their ticket weeks ago. They might not get the best slot in the dance, but they will be dancing.
And that’s where Heyward’s mind is entering the final week of the regular season. “I’m gearing up for the playoffs”, he told reporters after the Steelers’ loss, via Pittsburgh’s DSEN. “That’s where I’m at right now, and I think everybody should be, too”.
Truth be told, I’m not sure how Steelers fans will take this comment, given that they’re not in the playoffs right now. Yes, they will be participating in the playoffs, but they still have the Bengals first. Obviously, Cameron Heyward didn’t mean to imply he was thinking past the Bengals, but some might think that.
But in reality, the Bengals game is a part of the Steelers’ path toward the playoffs. While they don’t have a win-and-in situation for the division, they do need to beat the Bengals to win the AFC North. Heyward knows this and knows the value of a home game. So his focus is on beating the Bengals and getting the best playoff seeding they can.
With two weeks left in the NFL season, the best the Steelers can do is No. 3 now. They can no longer get the top two seeds, nor can they be the No. 4 seed. If Heyward and company don’t win the AFC North, they could still be any one of the Wild Cards.
It might not feel like it, but the Steelers have qualified for the playoffs in four of the past five seasons. If they fail to win the AFC North this year, it will be three out of four times as a Wild Card, granted. And they have lost in the Wild Card Round in each of those previous instances. In fact, Cameron Heyward has only been on the field for one playoff win, ever.
Since the Steelers drafted Heyward in 2011, they are 3-8 in the postseason. They won twice in the 2016 postseason, reaching the conference finals, but Heyward was injured at the time. The only Steelers playoff win in win he played came a year before, thanks to Joey Porter Sr.
If the Steelers don’t win a playoff game this season, it will be eight years since their last win. While Cameron Heyward is doing well in his fight against Father Time, he will lose eventually. He knows this or any other year could be his last chance at playoff success, let alone a Super Bowl.
But what Heyward said is also important perspective. While the Steelers are coming out of an ugly stretch, they are still a team that was good enough to lock up a playoff spot by Week 15. It doesn’t look like they will win the division, but they know they are a better team than they have shown lately. Heyward wants to remind the Steelers of the team they were, the team they need to be in the playoffs.
