Somewhere out there in an alternate reality in which the only things different from this world are the results of their two games last week, the Pittsburgh Steelers would be well-positioned to stake a claim to the AFC’s No. 1 playoff seed. All they would have to do to guarantee it is win out.
Their losses to the Arizona Cardinals and the New England Patriots, however, dropped them to 7-6, a far cry from 9-4, which would have tied the Miami Dolphins for the second-best record in the conference, behind only the 10-3 Baltimore Ravens, whom they are scheduled to play in the finale.