The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to get back to the playoffs after barely missing the 2022 slate. They finished 9-8 and tied for the final wild-card spot, but were left out after a tiebreaker. The team’s last few playoff appearances haven’t gone well, as they’ve lost 42-21, 48-37, and 45-42 to the Chiefs, Browns, and Jags, respectively. But the team is looking to turn the tides in 2023 by punching a ticket to the playoffs, and hopefully making some noise as well. The Steelers are 7-4 through 12 weeks of the year, which leaves just two questions. Will the Steelers make it this year, and what should be expected of them if they do?
Breaking Down the Path to the 2023 Playoffs for the Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers have themselves in a nice spot with a 7-4 record entering Week 13. The team is coming off of a decent win over division rival Cincinnati last week in the first game post-Matt Canada. The biggest question mark all year has been the offense, and in the new-era NFL, you need a great offense. The firing of Canada could have some decent impacts, but nothing too crazy. The offense did take a nice leap last week and is expected to continue doing so. But the unit will have to be consistent for the six remaining games and beyond for Pittsburgh to have success.
The Logistics, Remaining Opponents (Predictions, Previews), and Grand Scheme
The Logistics
The Steelers have six more regular season games this year, with half of them at home. At home, they have the 2-10 Cardinals, the 2-9 Patriots, and the 5-6 Bengals. The road slate is a lot tougher though, as Pittsburgh will play the 6-5 Colts and Seahawks, as well as the 9-3 Ravens. From pure looks, you’d say they win all games at home and then maybe pull one off on the road. That may seem like the most likely scenario, but things can get wonky on any given Sunday. Overall, I think the team could very well go 4-2 or better, provided they play good football. This could put the Steelers around a final mark of 10-7 or 11-6, which would be more than enough to make the playoffs. Let’s take a look at each game and see where Pittsburgh stacks up for the rest of the year.
Week 13, Home vs. Arizona Cardinals (2-10) + Week 14, Home vs. New England Patriots (2-9)
The Steelers get two seemingly easy games for each of their next two games. They’ll face two teams who have four wins combined all year, a total that the Steelers have almost doubled. Just looking at pure records and numbers, you’d say the Steelers have both games ‘in the bag.’ But that is never true, and an opposing team can bring a new challenge every week. The biggest problem they’ll face with the Cardinals is Kyler Murray. His scampering and playmaking ability make any team anxious to play him. Plus, the Patriots usually have a stingy defense and things could get surprisingly tough. As long as the offense performs in a decent manner, Pittsburgh should be fine.
Both games, being in Pittsburgh in early December, are susceptible to very cold, windy, and potentially wet conditions. The Steelers would have the upper hand in the matchup with the Cardinals and also be evenly matched with New England. Overall, if the Steelers just play their game and make some good offensive strides, there’s no reason they won’t be 9-4 in two weeks. I predict a 24-13 win over the Cardinals this weekend and a 20-10 victory on Thursday Night Football in Week 14 over New England.
Week 15, Away at Indianapolis Colts (6-5)
Looking at the Colts’ record, you’d probably expect this to be an evenly-matched game for the Steelers; you wouldn’t be wrong. In fact, I believe this may be the team’s toughest game for the rest of the year. Why? Because the Ravens may be resting starters in the Week 18 game, and the Seahawks have been struggling recently. This game against Indianapolis could be a pretty big one for the AFC playoff picture. The Steelers did take the victory last year in Indy, but this is a brand-new Colts team.
They have dynamic weapons in both the running and passing game, and this could be a true test for the defense. In fact, the Colts find themselves in the playoff picture right now and could still be vying for a spot in two weeks. I expect it to be a close game with the result simply being a toss-up, and strictly dependent on the game flow. I predict the final score to be 24-20, but with no clue who the winner might be. For the sake of getting a final record, I’ll take the Colts in a surprising yet exciting home win for them.
Week 16, Home vs. Cincinnati Bengals (5-6)
The Steelers just handled the Bengals in Cincy this past week, and they’ll get them again at home in Week 16. With Joe Burrow out for the year, I don’t expect the Bengals’ offense to be much of a factor. The Steelers won 16-10 in Week 12, using a stifling defense and a new-look offense to take down a rival. As long as the offense makes some good progression, I don’t see why Pittsburgh wouldn’t be able to handle Cincinnati. As always, they are tough and will prove to be somewhat of a trap game between the Colts and Seahawks.
Simply going with the “Steeler Way,” I don’t expect Pittsburgh to be 4-0 in these first four games. 3-1 seems like a good goal, as I think they’re bound to slip up once, most likely against Indy. I would love to be wrong and I do think that going 4-0 is possible, but I’m just trying to be realistic.
Week 17, Away at Seattle Seahawks (6-5)
This game, like the Colts game, could be a real test for the Steelers before the playoffs. Seattle has been struggling with injuries lately so it’s hard to tell who they’ll throw out there at the end of December. Regardless, this is a tough football team that should make the playoffs barring any big changes. They have plenty of young stars on both sides of the ball, and the game being in Seattle doesn’t help Pittsburgh at all. Again, I could see this one being close and a toss-up.
Week 18, Away at Baltimore Ravens (9-3)
Looking at just their record, you can probably tell that the Ravens are a very good football team. And like most Steelers-Ravens games of the last decade or so, this should be a close and low-scoring defensive battle. Pittsburgh has had Lamar Jackson’s number as he’s just 2-4 against them in his career. He’s thrown four touchdowns to seven interceptions in that span, while also being sacked a total of 20 times over the last four games! The Ravens could be on their way to the #1 seed in the AFC, which if locked up, would mean the team could rest their starters.
It is worth noting that Baltimore has a rather difficult schedule to close the year, so both the Ravens and Steelers records could be close. If things worked out in a certain way, this Week 18 game could be for the division and a home playoff game should the teams be within a game of each other. It’s hard to even fathom the fact that the Steelers could host a playoff game, but the schedule works in their favor. Ultimately, it will come down to how both they and the Ravens react to and play against their very differing schedules. I think that Baltimore at full strength would win, but there are a lot of factors that impact this game.
What Will Their Record Be, and What Would the Playoffs Look Like?
Overall, I think that barring any big developments in the Steelers or their opponents, they should finish 10-7 or 11-6. If they didn’t win the division (the more likely scenario), they’d be a top wild-card team and likely visit either the Dolphins or Jags for the first round. Both of those games would be tough, and even a win would likely set up another away game in either Kansas City or Baltimore. I don’t think a deep playoff run is probable just yet, but they could make some noise and win a game or two. However, only time will tell just how the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2023 playoff hopes and path will take shape.
Main Photo Credit: Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK
