Steelers Drawing Kansas City Chiefs Comparisons

A former NFL defensive back likened the Pittsburgh Steelers to the reigning Super Bowl champions.

Dec 8, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson (3) and defensive tackle Cameron Heyward (97) shake hands against the Cleveland Browns during the third quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Time and time again this season, the Pittsburgh Steelers have found ways to come away with victories while doing so in a multitude of different ways, particularly in close games.

That quality caused former New England Patriots and All-Pro safety Devin McCourty to compare the Steelers to the Kansas City Chiefs, who have won the Super Bowl in each of the past two seasons and also consistently find ways to come out on top week-over-week.

"This Pittsburgh team, they remind me of the team we just watched, the Kansas City Chiefs," McCourty said on the Unbuttoned podcast with Chris Simms. "They're not getting the credit that Kansas City is getting because Kansas City is the defending champs, but this Pittsburgh Steelers team wins whatever way they want.

"Last week, it was Russ [Wilson] throwing for 400 yards. This week, not as many, but we're running 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."

As McCourty alluded to, the past two weeks have served as a perfect example of Pittsburgh's ability to clutch up and win with different styles.

In Week 13 against the Cincinnati Bengals, Russell Wilson and the offense put up 520 yards en route to a 44-point performance.

Then, in Week 14 versus the Cleveland Browns, the Steelers' defense forced three turnovers in an all-around strong showing while the offense mustered 267 yards.

Pittsburgh has played in a one-possession game five times over the past six weeks while owning a 5-1 record over that stretch, further evidencing its innate capacity to end up in the win column.

As for the Chiefs, while they aren't quite as dominant as they've been in years past, they enter Week 15 with a 12-1 record largely due to the fact that they've been victorious in a ridiculous 10 one-score contests this season.

The Steelers will get their crack at Kansas City on Christmas Day in Week 17, where (barring a tie) one of the two teams will snap a recent trend and go home a loser in a game that may have major seeding implications within the AFC playoff picture.

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