Steelers hope history will be their guide
The Steelers are 12770-1 (.644) under Mike Tomlin. Only Bill Belichick has a higher winning percentage among active head coaches with at least three years of head coaching experience.
The Steelers have been even better under Tomlin after the off week. They are 75-37 (.669), including a 36-14 record since 2013.
The only time Tomlin lost more games than he won after the off week was in 2009, when the Steelers were 4-5 down the stretch. Tomlin uttered the now-infamous, “We’re going to unleash hell in December” quote during the midst of that late-season slide, all to no avail as the Steelers missed the playoffs with a 9-7 record.
The Steelers were 7-1 after the off week in 2017 and 7-2 in 2016. They’ll need a similar record this season to make it back to the playoffs after a 2-4 start. If the Steelers go 7-3 in their final 10 games, they’ll finish with a 9-7 record.
That’s a tall task under any circumstance, much less without Roethlisberger, who is on seasonending injured reserve.
The only positive for the Steelers is they play in a weak division. The Ravens are 4-2 entering Sunday’s game, but they have the Seahawks, Patriots, Rams, 49ers and Bills in the coming weeks. Those teams have a combined 27-7 record. The only break in that stretch is against the 0-6 Bengals.
The Ravens have a twogame lead on the Steelers entering the weekend, but it could be a much different story a month from now if the Steelers, who play their next three games at Heinz Field, take advantage of the weaker portion of their schedule, starting with a Monday night game Oct. 28 against the hapless Dolphins.
It might not take a winning record to make the playoffs, but it’s the best path to get there.
The previous time a team with a losing record made the playoffs was 2014 when the Panthers qualified with a 7-8-1 record by winning the NFC South Division. The Seahawks won their division with a 7-9 record in 2010 and then won a playoff game.
More teams have made it with 8-8 records. Most recently, the 2011 Broncos qualified with an 8-8 record. Steelers fans need not be reminded what happened in the playoffs that year: The 12-4 Steelers traveled to Denver and lost to the Broncos in overtime on an 80-yard touchdown pass from Tim Tebow to DeMaryius Thomas.