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Steelers Playoff Hopes Come Down to Three Teams

The Pittsburgh Steelers will need help from two teams to earn a place in the playoffs.

Noah Strackbein

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PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers kept their playoff hopes alive in Week 17 with a win over the Seattle Seahawks. Now, they'll need some help from themselves and two other teams to earn the final wildcard spot in the AFC this postseason. 

After their 30-20 win over Seattle, the Steelers have a 54% chance to make the playoffs, according to the New York Times simulator. This comes after a less-than-ideal week of results outside of their own. 

While Pittsburgh did their job in Week 17, they didn't get much help from the rest of the league. Outside of the Kansas City Chiefs eliminating the Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos from the playoffs with their win over the Bengals, the rest of the AFC didn't turn out in the Steelers' favor. Pittsburgh needed the Patriots to defeat the Bills, Raiders to defeat the Colts, Panthers to defeat the Jaguars and Chargers to defeat the Broncos. 

None of those happened. 

Heading into Week 18, the Steelers' playoff hopes will come down to three games. They'll need a win over the Baltimore Ravens and either the Jaguars to lose to the Tennesee Titans or the Buffalo Bills to lose to the Miami Dolphins. 

Pittsburgh can also claim a spot with a win over the Ravens and a tie between the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts.

With Baltimore claiming the top seed in the AFC in Week 17, chances are they play most of their backups against the Steelers. That should provide some lift in their chances to win. 

Buffalo falling to Miami seems like the most likely scenario out of the two external games the Steelers will monitor. With Miami losing against the Ravens this past weekend, they'll be fighting to hold onto the second seed above the Chiefs and the AFC East title, which Buffalo would claim with a win. 

Here are the other scenarios for the Steelers: 

  • Steelers tie and Indianapolis and Houston do not tie and Jacksonville loss.
  • Steelers loss and Indianapolis and Houston do not tie, Jacksonville loss, and Denver win.

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Noah Strackbein
NOAH STRACKBEIN

Noah is the Publisher for All Steelers, Inside the Panthers (InsideThePanthers.com) and Inside the Penguins (InsidethePenguins.com), and is the host of All Steelers Talk (YouTube.com/AllSteelersTalk). A Scranton native, Noah made his way to the Pittsburgh sports scene in 2017. Now, he's pretty much full-yinzer.

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