Steelers Are Playoff Bound! Injuries, Changes & Bills Preview

Everything you need to know about the Pittsburgh Steelers playoff matchup and how far this team can go.

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What is up Steelers Nation thank you so much for jumping on to another episode of all Steelers talk I’m no stb joined always by my May man Stephen Thompson find us on youtube.com All Steelers talker subscribe anywhere you get your podcast the Pittsburgh Steelers are player off bound thanks to the

Jacksonville Jaguars a Little Help from their friends as one would say they travel to Orchard Park New York this Sunday to take on the bills and what could be another snow game another winter storm for the Pittsburgh Steelers does that favor them yet again in a very difficult matchup we’ll dive into that

Some injuries obviously the quarterback situation for the Pittsburgh Steelers and why some people want to bring up maybe it’s time to sit Mason no it’s not we’ll talk about that more and uh obviously the Steelers make the playoffs successful season we’ll have an answer for you it is a really beautiful day out

Here in the Burke I don’t know if you’ve been outside yet but weather’s nice it’s a little rainy but it’s it’s warm out there which is crazy because I went for a walk last night it was about 10 degrees I’m still making my way back from the snowstorm in good old Hancock

Maryland but it was a good time how we uh how we feeling my friend feel great I mean I don’t know how you couldn’t on a day like today I mean it’s yeah it’s a little gray out it’s a little rainy but I mean look playoff magic is is in the

Air and I think uh there was a point in this season where I think Steelers fans were were even saying like do we even want to make the playoffs like is this even like worth it do we want to make a run at at this and uh once you’re

Finally here you’re you’re all in I feel like and you’re just you know you’re caught up in in everything you were doing over the weekend rooting for the teams that you had to root for and once you saw everything kind of fall into place you’re you’re kind of Tak I feel

Like you should be taking like a why not us kind of attitude you know we’ll get into that in a second but like you know you just once you make it in it’s like nothing matters besides the fact that you’re here you know and that you have a

Chance and you’re still breathing for another week exactly all you got to do is make the dance Mike Tomlin said that a million times this season at times just like you said it it was almost like nobody believed I don’t think we believed and they came back and and

Proved everybody including us probably towards the middle of the Season wrong which was awesome I think that is the best roller coaster to ride to be on the hot streak near the end of the season and we’ll dive into that a little bit more but shout out to the Jacksonville

Jaguars the Terrible Towel curse lives on that will uh that will never die you weren’t you weren’t around and you weren’t a Steelers fan so you weren’t really paying attention but I could still look back to plenty of times I think highlighted by me as the time that

The Tennessee Titans who might have been undefeated at the time but they were dominating the NFL that was the uh Chris Johnson I want to say larius white days just absolutely smoking teams in the AFC they go to Pittsburgh they stomp out a Terrible Towel this is when I learned of

The Terrible Towel curse and next thing you know the Pittsburgh Steelers well they’re uh they’re they’re in the playoffs they’re a little farther than the playoffs it might have been the year they won the Super Bowl if not the Ravens won the Super Bowl but the Ravens

Smoked them in uh in in the second round the divisional round of the playoffs and that was a shout out to Terrible Towel it’s always shout out to the Terrible Towel you learn quickly do not mess with that little tiny yellow towel as people like to say shout out them the

Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Buffalo Bills it’s supposed to be snowy it’s supposed to be wet it’s supposed to be cold it’s supposed to be rainy we’ll dive into uh into into that in a second I want to ask you watched football all day yesterday I watched football all day

Yesterday our producer Nick watched football all day yesterday I mean did the script writers they couldn’t have done it any better even even with the Steelers claiming a playoff spot earlier in the day which I I kind of I kind of appreciate it I looked at it and just

Said all right I get to enjoy this final game of the regular season it could not be any more intense right up until the end and all I kept thinking the whole time was could you imagine if the Steelers if the Jaguars won and the Steelers had to watch this all night

Long it would have been the most anxiety ridden stress driven game for any Pittsburgh Steelers fans I got to say shout out to uh shout out to script writers yeah I mean look so there were there were three games that I think had control over the Steelers playoff fate

Right like it was Texans Colts uh Jag Titans and and bills Miami and I think all three of them at some point looked like they could end in a tie like there was there was that there was a certain point in every game where you’re like oh something chaotic is about to be

Unleashed something we hadn’t even considered is going to happen um yep yeah and I think they all had like pretty pretty epic finishes I mean they were they were all exciting games they were all compelling like I was so afraid waking up yesterday morning that like I

Was like damn the Trevor Lawrence is a little hobbled like Titans aren’t that good like we’re gonna get some 10 seven slug slugfest that we are all forced to keep our eyes glued to for the rest of the afternoon but no they delivered like a classic like high-scoring game like

Everyone playing like you know their season was on the line like even the Titans like shout out to Mike fael who man if you like there might not be a better motivator in the NFL like maybe Dan Campbell’s up there but Mike Fel to

Get a five- 11 team to like to to play with that kind of Edge and that kind of energy was was really impressive and a lot of fun and gave me so much more respect for for him as a coach um but yeah just top to bottom every game that

Steelers fans had to watch over the weekend was really good game was a really good game like the worst one was the actual Steelers game really it was and even then like people were talking they were like oh well you know like this is is it we need a high score and

Blah blah blah the sacks whatever dude it was pouring rain and I think that knowing that being able to acknowledge that you’re like this is a dog fight you know from top to bottom this is a dog fight and the Steelers felt like it felt like the Steelers were in control that

Entire game which I think is good you know if it came down to the wire especially after the weekend that they had to go through afterwards I just don’t know I don’t know if anybody would have made it you know I think by the end of Sunday night you would have just been

Sitting there just going like oh my heart’s hurting man this is tough this is not this is not fun sweating it would have been uh it would have been bad but but you’re 100% right even down to the last second of the Houston Colts game you were just glued to your television

All weekend long it was as good of a week 18 as you could possibly ask for in the NFL now the Pittsburgh Steelers they travel to Orchard Park they take on to the bills they are the seventh seed which means they will not get a home game no matter what in this environment

But the Steelers have won three away games in a row and if they finish it out and head to the Super Bowl it will be six away games in a row that the Pittsburgh Steelers have won to find themselves in Vegas in early February it’s supposed to be snowy I think it’s

Supposed to snow Saturday get real windy and rainy and gross on Sunday I mean the Steelers have been a ground and pound team you look at this weather you’re thinking H maybe this favors the Steelers a little bit for team that uh has found their identity

Running the football yeah I mean look I don’t think the bills are any slouch running the football either but no no agreed but this is a team that really relies on Josh Allen’s arm and uh Stefon Diggs to haul in those passes so I think it absolutely I don’t know it

Neutralizes a big part of the bills offense which I think absolutely helps the Steelers to a certain extent I mean it kind of limits what Mason Rudolph would be able to do throwing the ball down the field but yes I mean that’s a I think if we’re comparing these two

Passing offenses I think the bills are the ones who rely on theirs a lot more often so it’s an advantage for the Steelers but I mean I don’t know like theoretically Buffalo is kind of used to this weather a little bit I I I don’t

Know I mean it’s you kind of I feel like never know what you’re G to get when you put guys in an environment like that when you make the ball a little bit slippery I mean I think about that that throw Mason had to to Deontay Johnson

Yeah this weekend like kind of cutting through the rain I mean it was one of the few like deep passes somewhat deep passes that he had to make all game um but he he’s zi that one in um so I feel like he never really he zipped that one

In when the rest of the game was all about you know four yard dump offs and you know kind of wobblers just getting to his receivers and letting them get down in space um so I mean you never really know what you’re going to get from from weather like this in a game

Like this but for the Steelers who who are in a rhythm running the football who I mean we’ll be facing a a completely underman bills defense that has played pretty well but so you can’t ignore all the injuries that they’ve had um I don’t know you got you got to feel good about

That going up to Buffalo with conditions that are favorable to a running football game 100% And and I was going to bring up that pass to Deontay Johnson for a game that was I mean pouring rain it wasn’t like oh it was R like it was

Pouring rain and the entire if you were on Twitter at all for 10 seconds during that game you probably saw 20 30 tweets about how bad the cameras were and how wet they just because like I didn’t think there was anything they could do I think that you WIP off immediately was

Just pouring rain again and he sliced that through the rain for a DOT that went 70 yards if he could do that I got full faith in Mason Rudolph pretty much anywhere also with the gloves on Mason two gloves as some would say did Kenny pick it Inspire him that’s I mean that’s

Poss possibly you look at this and I think the Buffalo obviously is you know probably more accustomed to how bad the weather gets in Buffalo but the Steelers are no stranger to snow games they’re no stranger to bad weather this is AFC North football I think it it it almost

Boost them a little bit to be able to look at it and say we just did that and if it’s snowing I’ll take snow over rain and like freezing rain the worst weather condition you could possibly play in snow I think I think things will be uh I

Think things will be just fine you look at this game you look at the Buffalo Bills they are I want to say the hottest team in football right now five game winning streak they’ve beat some big ones the Steelers might be the second hottest team in football right now you

Think the Steelers got a shot like you look at this just as a as a first initial glance where you like okay you know anything could happen yeah I mean I think we’ve talked about this before well first of all I think shout out to I

Think it was Will Graves who I saw tweet this is either last night or this morning but um Steelers and bills two longest winning streaks in the NFL right now active winning streaks yeah two hottest teams in the NFL two hottest teams that’s look at the script writers

They saying the script writers know they always know they always know what’s coming probably because they Rite it but shout out them they never miss right um but yeah I mean so I think coming into this and i’ I think we’ve said this before like there’s not a team in the

AFC playoff picture that I don’t think they have a chance of beating like there is no one who I thought completely overmatched them like even from the Ravens to the Chiefs to the Dolphins bills who like this is a wide open this has been a wide open AFC ever since the

Beginning of the season and to that I mean on based on that fact alone I feel like the Steelers had a chance just about based on whoever they drew but I mean you look at the bills who are so volatile but also so banged up in a lot

Of ways and Josh Allen is kind of always prone to letting a team hang around because he makes some some bad decisions from time to time even though he’s a great player and and makes a lot of great plays like he he can help keep a

Lesser team in a game and the bills are a little bit a little bit like the Steelers and that they they play down to their competition a little bit and I think it’s entirely possible that you could you could see a Bills team that that overlooks the Steelers a little bit

Thinks that you know they got Mason Rudolph coming in here he’s a little they might not look at him as as legit they might not look at that defense is legit because it’s so banged up as well um I so I I thought the Steelers had a

Chance going into this I don’t know if the matchup is necessarily ideal I don’t think it was the best one that they could have possibly drawn from all the scenarios that that were in play going into Sunday but um I feel just as good about their chances of winning this game

As you know I I would have if they were going to Kansas City or if they were going to Miami I mean this team they this team has just a good a shot uh you know of winning this game I think as as any other matchup so I I I’m

Still pretty confident that they like they won’t be more than when I’m thinking about seven and a half Point docks that seems like a lot man that seems points for a playoff game lot of points for a playoff game I agree I agree best case scenario they would have

Went to Miami I think Miami is a very beatable team right now especially for a Steelers like all the Steelers have they they had an eight-minute drive against Baltimore you do three of those in a game you’re not you’re beating Miami like Miami doesn’t even have a shot at

All uh especially with how banged up they are Buffalo is just like you said probably the the least ideal team that you could play but this is the dance and that seven point seven and a half point spread so unrealistic just so unre like you’re not losing by seven points in a

Playoff game it’s just not happening especially when you’re as hot as the Pittsburgh Steelers and people could say whatever they want and maybe maybe Freez and cold takes could take this in a week and clip it and say no stra B’s an idiot but chances are this is this is a good

Game and and I’m not going to say just like you I I agree with you I’m not going to say that this is winnable and this is their their best matchup and this is ideal or whatever no matter how you want to turn it I think it’s their

Most challenging matchup but I think that in the Steelers eyes you get through this one the rest of the road is as easy as it comes like you you got to go to Baltimore and I get it Baltimore is a Powerhouse right now and they are terrifying it’s Baltimore the Steelers

The Steelers have something on Baltimore they can continue to have something on Baltimore they’ve won was it was like 12 of the last 15 games against Baltimore something like that like that’s the team I want to play in the second round 100% And then I mean from there you end up in

Kansas City you end up in Cleveland you end up in Miami all winnable games all teams that you’re familiar with it’s just about beating Buffalo and and and I’m not going to say they go to the playoffs if they or they go to the Super Bowl if they beat Buffalo but this is

You know you want to start out beating the beating the best I think this is this is the best case scenario are the hardest team the best team the Steelers can play and I I think they got a shot like I I just at a small glance the

Steelers are just as hot as Buffalo right now every piece of this team looks good you’re dealing with some injuries that we’ll get into in a minute here but I’m I’m I’m optimistic I’m gonna say I’m optimistic about where the Pittsburgh Steelers are and this match up against

Bal or Buffalo even if some people are a little nerve-wracking about it or nerve-racked about it guys we we have gear new merchandise from a to Moo bleed black and gold Kenny to George and plenty of others now at our new website blackand goldapp apparel.com and the

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For everything let’s talk about the quarterback Mason Rudolph Kenny picket people I think by halftime were tweeting oh it’s time to put Kenny picket back in Mason isn’t throwing for 300 yards he’s getting sacked twice what are you doing here na Harris and Jaylen Warren are fumbling in the football that’s Mason’s

Fault get Kenny back in the game I I mean we both know that tomlin’s going to go to the podium Tomorrow there’s going to be a question about a quarterback because journalists have to do their job and they’re going to ask about the quarterback and tomlin’s gonna say it’s it’s Mason Rudolph Mason

Rudolph’s goingon to be the quarterback there’s no questions right like there’s it no matter what the situation is we are in the postseason the Pittsburgh Steelers have made the playoffs it is it this is it this is your team this is your starting quarterback doesn’t matter how he looks

Against Buffalo doesn’t matter this is your team right this is Mason Rudolph’s team at least until 2024 yeah I mean we we said this I want to say a couple weeks ago but like yeah uh Mason Rudolph gets the job until like he loses I mean until this team loses

Like I don’t know I don’t think that changes at all after a completely soaking wet game in which he still won like and had 110 passer rating which which is still better than I mean look at I’m not trying to bag on Kenny picket but it’s still better than

Than anything Kenny pick it’s point on the field and he had he completed 90% of his passes 90% of his passes in the for reeing cold rain unreal yeah 110 pass rating man that’s that is literally higher than any passer rating Kenny pigot has ever posted in his career I

Like I I I’m sorry I can’t get over that stat like the highest he’s ever posted is 108 and a half and Mason Rudolph has smoked that in all three of his his starts this year yep I I don’t know I know that’s an imperfect stat but like

Come on like we there is it it is I don’t know I think it would be not just unwise but a little ridiculous and a little I don’t know it would just it would be confirmation of everything that we’ve talked about about Mason Rudolph for the past two years

Like I I don’t know how you could look Mason Rudolph in the eye and say no you have not done enough to earn earn the ball in in a playoff game after you’ve won three in a row to get us to this point like that’s that’s the thing like

He he is if I mean he is one of if not the biggest reasons why they are able to like they are in this position in the first place like he is the he is the one of the few variables that have changed uh throughout the season that has

Actually worked you know like through a banged up defense you know the running game I get I get it that’s improved but it’s all the same personnel and he’s added like a a new dimension to the offense with his ability to throw deep and his his aggressiveness going deep

Like I I just I get I I think people are just kind of a little entrenched in well I just kind of believe that this quarterback is is better than the other and yeah it’s going to be hard to change people’s minds but I feel like that’s an

Offseason problem like you got to hang up that conversation until we hit the offseason because it would be completely unfair I think in my mind to to switch quarterbacks at this point when Mason has done quite literally everything that you have asked him to do yeah you want

To talk about an imperfect stat you want to talk about a perfect stat the Los a three and0 with Mason Rudolph and they look good and the offense looks good George Pickins is smiling man George Pickins caught zero passes for zero yards against the Baltimore Ravens the

First time in his entire career that he was not targeted I’m talking NFL college and high school the man has never ever had a game where he was not targeted until week 18 against the Baltimore Ravens that guy was smiling ear to ear on the sideline all game long it doesn’t

You could talk about stats you can talk about wins you can talk about the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing Fun football right now and when you play fun football the energy in the entire room is better the Vibes are better everything about this team is Just Smiles and Good Vibes and that’s what

You want right now like that’s what Mason Rudolph has changed I’ve heard from people within the building that have spent a lot of time on the planes and in the locker room and in the meetings and so on and so forth who have said that you know it’s nothing against

Kenny it’s not that Ken he was doing anything wrong it was just since Mason has taken over since the offense has started to click you could just tell that like guys are joking around and and things aren’t as serious and it’s just it’s just a fun we’re just playing

Football environment that’s what you need right now like that’s what the Pittsburgh Steelers have been missing for two years is just go out there and have fun and play some football and stop stressing about the little things and stop worrying about how disastrous everything could be that’s what you need

Right now you know if you’re going to win if you’re going to win and Buffalo if you’re going to go on a run in the playoffs it’s about how good your energy can be how high you could stay on yourself how confident you could be how

Little noise you could take in you know if you could remove all the noise and you could go into a playoff push and just say let’s just play some football your chances increased significantly and that’s what Mason Rudolph has brought to this team there’s like there’s a zero

Chance and if we ever like you know if you ever went to Mike Tomlin and said hey I think Kenny picket should probably start he’d laugh at you and be like look are you stupid like have you watched football the last three weeks do you know what position we’re in right now

We’re in the playoffs Mason Rudolph has got us to the playoffs we’ll talk about Kenny picket in the off season but for right now it’s Mason Rudolph’s job I don’t think there’s any questions right and the idea that this would be the moment where you would where

Youing right like he was healthy last week I don’t know if like if it didn’t happen last week if it didn’t happen in that game over the weekend why would it happen now I I don’t don’t I don’t get that at all I don’t know but the conversation has been out there it’s

Been out there I think the second that Mason Rudolph got sacked the first time I saw a couple of people including some people on the radio and you know I’m not into calling anybody out so I’m not gonna but there are some people out there that immediately were just like ah

Maybe it’s time to put Kenny picker back in and I’m like you are just the most dramatic human being ever and I’m dramatic right but no object permanence you know like no like nothing it’s it’s only what’s right in front of your face right now I don’t know yep and that’s

Not how the Steelers or the NFL think and it is Mason Rudolph’s job I think end of conversation all right let’s talk about the other uh pieces to the puzzle here TJ watt dealing with a grade 2 MCL sprain Minka Fitzpatrick vows to return to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the

Playoffs I mean that’s two sides of a coin here I’m gonna be honest JJ Watt tweets it out which look it JJ’s got to get a little bit better at at at declaring what is news and not just saying best case scenario for TJ watt

That I was like is that does that me are you hypothetically speaking do you have I didn’t know I didn’t know and I got roasted on Twitter that’s on me JJ tweets that out he says a couple weeks rest and Recovery just knowing TJ Watt and and you know there’s probably more

Than a likely chance he does not play against the bills I would say it’s definitely closer to he sits than he plays significantly closer to he sits than he plays just knowing TJ watt watching TJ watt monitoring and listening and interviewing and watching practice and so on and so forth I’m not

Ruling TJ watt out until TJ watt says he’s not playing until that until that happens I’m not saying TJ watt’s not gonna be on the field he’s never won a playoff game he’s having one of the best seasons of his career he is the driving

Force for this defense and I get it I get it it’s like as bad of an injury as it could possibly be before worst case scenario I’m just saying I’m not ruling TJ out until he says he’s not going to play on the other side of that Minka Fitzpatrick returns vows to return

That’s ginormous for the Pittsburgh Steelers I’ll let you uh Weighing on both of those yeah I don’t really know if I share that same kind of optimism about TJ I love it I I agree with all your points like they that all makes sense um a great to MCL sprain is a

Great to MCL sprain easy yeah it’s it’s it’s not easy so I mean I I will keep an open mind for you know I will I will I will leave the light on for TJ watt but uh I I’m not expecting him to play in

This game uh hot take but um I mean I think it’s possible he comes back earlier than then two like if they if they win this week I I would not be shocked at all to see him back on the field for round two whoever they would

Play in that in that situation um yeah Minka I take out his word quite honestly the guy played through a freaking broken hand so I mean I think anything is truly possible with that guy and he has he has proven that so um like Minka I I fully

Expect Mike Tom to not even have to mention Minka in his kind of injury report that he does uh at his usual like weekly press conference um and that’s a huge lift as good as Eric row and Patrick Peterson has been um you know make a Fitzpatrick is make a Fitzpatrick

And yes you’ll take him on the field every time I just wonder so like do you think Eric row like holds that spot do you think Patrick Peterson kind of becomes that second safety like how do you think they they sort that out I don’t know I think that’s a good

Question to ask because Patrick Peterson has looked good obviously at safety outside of tackling he got to learn how to tackle which maybe you can’t do it 32 years old who knows Eric row is I mean there’s no way you’re taking Eric row off the field that dude is he’s so good

And it’s just like he’s fun to watch like he he’s not coming up with interceptions even though sometimes he is but his like key instinct to go locate the football whenever it’s in the air and make the tackle is is just fun to see like it’s really it’s really fun

To watch I I mean I don’t think you take Eric raw off the field I think I ideally you move Patrick Peterson back to corner right and say and maybe like rotate him maybe play a little bit of both I have no idea because because let’s be honest

Even if Minka plays chances are he’s not playing 100% of the snaps you know so you’re not at that point you’re gonna you know guess what’s going on here but at the same time Damonte KZ comes back as well so now you got KZ and Minka oh

Shoot I forgot about that that’s yep yep you have you you have Eric row coming off the bench and possibly p Peterson I think that with the crowded safety room you move Pat back to Corner to kind of you know Just sh up your cornerback room

And let Minka row and KZ work at safety and then you you just it make sure that Pat’s ready make sure that Pat’s ready to drop back to safety if need be but I would say like Eric Rose played himself into a role and and honestly I wouldn’t

Even be surprised ver Gro has played himself into a starting role over Damonte KZ you know not they they go three rotation but that’s how good this guy’s been and and for just to just to kind of clarify how that works because I I had a lot of people asking me the

Steelers will have to sign him Eric row and Miles Jack back to the 53 man roster or to the 53 man roster in order to play this week and moving forward um they’ve already been called up three games I’m not totally sure how the practice squad call-ups go during the postseason but I

Don’t think they change either way they’ve already been called up for three games they’re out of call-ups so they have to be signed to the 53-man roster if I had to guess Blake Martinez is the guy that gets cut for Miles Jack and probably sign to the practice

Squad EI I it kind of depends on how they view Elijah Riley or Trent and Thompson special teams wise for who’s going to get cut there maybe Darius Rush is the name that gets cut there and and signed to the practice squad I couldn’t tell you but it’d be one of those guys

But they’d have to sign both of them and I expect both of them to get signed and and probably start but I would say Patrick Peterson moves to corner right like that’s your that’s probably your safest bet your most like that makes the most sense I

Would say yeah I I would tend to agree I feel like um just because I feel like your your corner room is so depleted without him like yeah moving him to safety was a move made out of necessity not necessarily because I mean he’s played really well there and maybe it’s

Uh I know we’re all talking about you know maybe that’s a longterm future thing for him um yeah I mean longterm as long as the rest of Patrick Peterson’s career last but yeah um but yeah I feel like it’s it’s got to be putting him back at corner that that room just like

Quite frankly needs bodies like you know when you when you put that many B when you get bodies back at safety and you get starting caliber bodies back at safety you you you got to allocate resources where they’re needed and and I think Pat Pete is needed most at corner

Right now yeah I agree especially you know with with so many guys coming back so many guys emerging and you want leave I Wallace out there but if Gabe which Gabe Davis left with I want to say a knee injury during the Miami game don’t

Know what’s going to go on there if he plays you you want your Corners out there you want as good of your of a cornerback set as you could get and and Pat’s a big safety big athletic safety that matches up well with a guy like like Gabe Davis and and they’ll they’ll

Look to utilize that the last uh piece of this last thing I I want to talk about before we head out of here every Monday we have finished this podcast with the question where do we stand with the Pittsburgh Steelers well the Pittsburgh Steelers are in this in the

Playoffs they’re in the dance there’s no more where do you stand they’re playoff team this is as far as you could go without just saying everything’s up for grabs and you know you just kind of take it day by day from where they are right now so the big question is this the

Steelers have been I want to say it’s six years seven years I never remember the number without a playoff win they fac the Buffalo Bills which we have said is the hottest team in the NFL right now and I think you have to take that into account when considering this

Question but they’ve made it they climb through all their adversity they they’ve made quarterback changes they’ve fired offensive coordinators they’ve lost their two biggest stars multiple times they’ve dealt with injury after injury after injury after injury Instagram post after tweet after nonsense after nonsense but they’re here if the

Pittsburgh Steelers do not win against the Buffalo Bills do you still consider this a successful season for the Pittsburgh Steelers and if they beat the Buffalo Bills I would imagine you do consider this as a successful season for the Pittsburgh Steelers I do consider it a successful

Season even if they lose um look I think I’ve come to piece with the fact that my preseason predictions were very very very wrong um I was just I was just off base I thought this would be and I mean I don’t want to count him

Out just yet but I thought this would be a real legitimate Super Bowl Contender I don’t know if they’re I don’t think they’re that right now and that’s that’s like fine though I mean yeah look this is a roster with a ton of holes in it a roster that went through 8 million

Injuries throughout the season especially on defense and still still found a way to make it happen um and I think we all buried them like really early and not just buried them in like they don’t have a chance to make the playoffs um but in a in a way of like

The Vibes are so down they are so dejected like this team just didn’t feel like it had Direction in any sense it didn’t feel like it had the kind of fight that it needed to to make the playoffs and they proved me wrong like I I they mooved they proved me very wrong

Um especially in the middle of the season and down this three- game stretch so I don’t know I call it I call it a successful season I mean I I think I could see the other side of the argument where you talk about you know is there a

Future is this something that they can build off of you don’t really know that um but I think for right now I call it a successful season just because I don’t know I I think this last this last three- game stretch has been really fun

To watch and I think yeah I don’t know if nothing else it pulled it pulled like a fan base and a franchise that was just at such a low Point like kind of out of that and gave it some hope gave it some gave you a reason to watch gave you a

Reason to believe and and just I don’t know kept you entertained for another week just kept doing that over and over again and I think that’s that was that was fun and so I I call that success I call that I call that successful quite

Honestly I uh I tend to agree I tend to agree I’ll say this I think it’s a successful season with an asteris right now with they they did it they pulled off what seeming was the impossible I mean you could go back there was a time when we were talking about maybe the

Pittsburgh Steelers were going to win five games this year and maybe it was that bad and you have to move on from Kenny picket we went through the you fire Mike Tomlin phase they actually did fire Matt Canada we went through the you trade everybody phase I still to a

Degree I’m still taking some heat from that one they went through it all the injuries the big injuries cam Hayward misses half the season Minka Fitzpatrick misses half the season Deontay Johnson misses a good chunk of games Pat frth misses a good chunk of games they switched quarterbacks three times three

Times and won 10 games to me that’s a successful season that being said you got into the dance to say that that’s enough I don’t think is enough I think that you have to keep it close it can’t be a blowout you get smoked because they’ve done this before they’ve been

Here before the last time they were in the playoffs they got beat so bad by the Kansas City Chiefs that you you don’t even remember they played the Kansas City Chiefs because they didn’t even feel like a game that’s how bad it was if that happens again you’re looking at this and you’re

Going man maybe they got lucky and I don’t want that to happen I don’t want that to be the case I want it to be a fun and energizing game and I want the script writers to just get them again get us all again draw us to the edge of

Our seats if that’s the case if they keep this game close if it is a competitive game if they prove that they deserve to be in the playoffs that’s all they got to do prove that you deserve to be here that’s a successful season in my

Book doesn’t have to come down to a win you win it’s it’s it is beyond a successful season like what you have pulled off what Mike Tomlin has pulled off unreal unimaginable nobody thought it was going to happen and even like there’s so many people out there and I

And I would say that there’s probably a lot of them that are that are right here that kept faith that whatever there’s a ton of Steelers fans that stayed the course but there are a lot of people especially L of people that do our job

That are like n you know I will be the first one to admit I had no faith in this football team for a long long time and even these last couple weeks I don’t think I had as much Faith as as I do right now to me that’s a successful

Season and they they did enough but now it’s about you know get rid of the asteris and just put a stomp on put a stamp on successful season yeah I mean like in fairness to people who didn’t really believe in this team yeah before this three- game winning streak or even

During it I mean they didn’t give you much reason to believe in them like for a good chunk of the season so I don’t think those people were necessarily off base but uh I don’t know different things happened you know they surprised you and it’s easy to say like you know

Hindsight is 2020 and everything but I I I think the the material circumstances changed so dramatically and so quickly that I I don’t really blame anyone who thought they were done or that they didn’t have a chance because it didn’t seem like they did at all and so credit

To them for proving people wrong and uh you just got to enjoy the ride now yep 100% and we’ll see what happens Buffalo comes Sunday with plenty of updates on Wednesday plenty of updates on Friday by then we’ll talk to Mike Tomlin and probably TJ Watt and Minka Fitzpatrick

And we’ll have all the answers when it comes to injury news and practice squad moves and what’s going on and what’s going on here and what’s going on there so plenty to keep up with it is a it is an exciting week it is as exciting of a

Week as it gets for the Pittsburgh Steelers the dance is here the postseason is here the playoffs are here the Pittsburgh Steelers are in with that we’re heading out of here thank you guys so much for jumping on to another episode of all Steelers talk make sure to subscribe to us on YouTube

Youtube.com/ allers talk and find us anywhere you get your podcast make sure to check out all of our work at all steelers.com and as always our pit coverage at inside theep panthers.com we will be back on Wednesday enjoy another beautiful day in the Berg peace