How can Steelers clinch playoff spot? AFC North team's postseason scenarios explained
The Steelers won 17-10 against the Ravens on Saturday to ensure that they remain alive for the playoffs after finishing 10-7 for the season.
It marks another winning return for coach Mike Tomlin. While that record will be personally important to him, he will want to be back in the postseason to really make this year a success.
Here, we explore what needs to happen for them to make it through.
Steelers' playoff scenarios after Week 18 win
The Steelers had a slim chance of making the playoffs even if they had lost to the Ravens, but by winning they did themselves a huge favor. They now know that three results, two of them entirely probable, can send them through.
If the Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts end up with a tie on Saturday night, Pittsburgh will be through. If that does not happen, if the Jacksonville Jaguars tie or lose to the Tennessee Titans or the Buffalo Bills lose to the Miami Dolphins, Mike Tomlin's charges will progress past the regular season.
If all the possibilities above take place, the Steelers will finish with the sixth seed in the AFC, right behind the Cleveland Browns. If both the Jaguars or Bills win, and the tie is what sends them through, they will be the seventh seed.
The Steelers will also snatch the sixth seed if both the Jaguars and Bills lose, irrespective of what happens in the game between Houston and Indianapolis. If either of Jacksonville or Buffalo wins, Pittsburgh will finish as the seventh seed even if the Texans and Colts do not play out a tie. You can explore more with Sportskeeda's playoff predictor.
AFC Playoff Picture after Steelers' win vs Ravens
The AFC playoff picture has changed in some ways after the Steelers' win against the Ravens. The pressure is now on the Jaguars and the Bills.
Jacksonville knows that if they tie or lose to the Titans, they will out of the postseason picture. Effectively, therefore, their only way to make it through is as the AFC South champions.
The Buffalo Bills are under huge pressure as well now. They will look at what happens in the game between the Colts and the Texans and then the Jaguars and Titans with some interest. They know that if either of Houston or Colts win and the Jaguars do so as well, they will have a simple path to the postseason.
The only way they can progress past the regular season is by winning the AFC North. That will give them the overall second seed in the conference as well. Therefore, the Steelers' win here could leave both Jacksonville and Buffalo with just the division championship crown as the way to the playoffs.
The NFL keeps giving us the thrills every season. But with Pittsburgh overcoming Baltimore, they could not have scripted it any better. The intrigue will continue right until the final game of the season when Buffalo takes on Miami on Sunday Night Football.
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