With only a few weeks left in the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers have not been the team most people expected them to be. Rather than scratching and clawing their way to the playoffs, the Steelers are comfortably atop the AFC North. Not every win has been pretty, but the Steelers clearly don’t care about that. They’re winning, and that’s all that matters.
“This Pittsburgh team, they remind me of the team we just watched, the Kansas City Chiefs,” former NFL safety Devin McCourty said Sunday night on Chris Simms Unbuttoned. “They’re not getting the credit that Kansas City is getting because Kansas City is the defending champs, but this Pittsburgh Steelers wins whatever way they want.
“Last week, it was Russ [Wilson] throwing for 400 yards. This week, not as many, but we’re gonna run the ball with Najee Harris, we’re gonna play good defense. We’re gonna do different things. Maybe it’s T.J. Watt, maybe it’s [Nick] Herbig, maybe it’s [Alex] Highsmith. You don’t know who it’s gonna be, but they find a way.”
If there’s one team that has more surprising wins than the Steelers, it’s the Chiefs. That may seem odd considering they’re 12-1 and coming off back-to-back Super Bowl wins, but it’s true. The Chiefs have been far less dominant than in past years.
Fans are likely aware of how often the Steelers find themselves in one-score games. The Chiefs might be beating the Steelers at that game this season. All but one of their wins have come in one-score games. They’ve routinely snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. It hasn’t been pretty, but it’s tough to argue with their results.
Obviously, the Steelers and the Chiefs are very different teams. For as good as he’s been, Wilson still isn’t Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs’ defense was carrying them early on, but they’ve trailed off there and struggled more recently. Meanwhile, the Steelers’ defense has been relatively consistent.
It’s going to be interesting when these two teams meet on Christmas Day. That game has all the makings of a sloppy, surprising contest that comes down to the wire. We’ll see who’s better at winning ugly.
The Steelers and the Chiefs are two of the AFC’s best teams, so we’ll see how their style of play translates to the playoffs. Their experience in close games might give them an advantage in a more competitive environment. It could also result in either of them running out of luck at the wrong time.
The Chiefs aren’t new to this style of football. They looked vulnerable last year too, but once they got into the playoffs, they continued to find ways to win. With less experience winning in the playoffs, the Steelers might struggle more. However, Mike Tomlin has continued to defy expectations this season. At this point, counting out his team would be a mistake.
