The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering the 2024 playoffs in a precarious situation. They could very well be the worst of the 14 teams across both conferences. Their record against playoff teams might suggest otherwise, with a 4-3 mark this regular season, but as most everybody else is playing their best football entering the tournament, the Steelers are on life support following a four-game losing streak.
“I would say right now, the way they’re playing, Pittsburgh is the worst team in the playoffs,” Mark Schlereth said Monday via FS1’s The Breakfast Ball. “The way they finished the season, they are not ready for primetime, and I don’t know that anything is gonna fix that, especially playing against a really good Baltimore team.”
The Steelers have it in them to beat the Ravens. They did it earlier this season without scoring a touchdown, relying on six Chris Boswell field goals. But the 34-17 blowout loss in Baltimore just a few weeks ago suggests an uphill battle Saturday night in the AFC North rivals’ third meeting this season. It’s hard to bank on the recent history of the Steelers winning eight of the last 10 against the Ravens with the most recent example being that ugly.
How impressive is that 4-3 record against playoff teams in the regular season? The Steelers went 3-0 against Wild Card teams in the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers, and Washington Commanders. The Steelers beat the Broncos 13-6 and their game against the Chargers featured a hobbled Justin Herbert who exited the game early. Their only impressive win among this group was against the Washington Commanders, but even that was a one-point victory.
They also went 1-3 against division winners. The one win was the aforementioned Ravens game, while the three losses were blowouts. They scored 119 total points against playoff teams while allowing 149. Their average margin of victory was five points while their average margin of defeat was 16.7.
As one of only three teams to enter the postseason on a four-game losing streak, things look bleak for the Black and Gold. The only thing they have going for them is the fact that it’s a division game and the Steelers have had Lamar Jackson’s number over the years. It might be too big of an uphill battle this time, but weird things can happen in division games.
Right now, the Steelers are 9.5-point underdogs on the road. That is the largest spread of the Wild Card early in the week.
