While the Pittsburgh Steelers are tied for the record for most Super Bowl wins by a franchise, they’ve been less successful in the postseason in recent years. They haven’t won a playoff game since the 2016 season. This offseason the Steelers worked to try to change that. They made several notable changes, including adding former Super Bowl champions like Aaron Rodgers and Jalen Ramsey. However, they’ve underwhelmed so far this year, and Stephen A. Smith is pessimistic about their chances at winning in the postseason.
“It ain’t gonna be this year,” Smith said recently on his podcast. “Who you gonna beat? You ain’t beating New England or Buffalo. You lucked out against New England earlier this year because they turned the ball over. You gonna beat the Indianapolis Colts?
“Not the Indianapolis Colts team I’m watching. They might blow you up out of here. Beat Kansas City? Ain’t happening. Beat Denver? Ain’t happening. You just look at the Steelers right now, it’s very disappointing.”
At the moment, the Steelers don’t look like a real playoff threat. They’ve lost their last two games in rough fashion. First, they dropped a winnable game on the road against the struggling Cincinnati Bengals. Then, they got crushed at home by the Green Bay Packers.
While they’ve been unable to win recently, the Steelers are 4-3 and still in first place in the AFC North. So, while things look down right now, they’re still in a good position to at least make the playoffs. The rest of their division hasn’t looked great, either. The Bengals are 3-5 and without Joe Burrow, the Cleveland Browns are 2-6, and the Baltimore Ravens are 2-5.
If the Steelers can at least stay afloat, they could win the AFC North. That would put them in line to host a playoff game. Perhaps that would give them a boost and help them win a postseason game.
However, the Steelers have major issues. Their defense is ranked 30th in the league, and their offense is ranked 25th. What they’re doing currently likely won’t be a winning recipe in the playoffs. There’s still time for the Steelers to improve things, though. The regular season is far from over.
