SUBSCRIBE NEWSLETTERS
ADVERTISE| CLASSIFIEDS| JOBS| E-TRIB
HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS NETWORK TRIBLIVE LOCAL
Western Pennsylvania's trusted news source
First Call: Steelers open as underdogs in Indy, somehow still in playoff spot; Joe Flacco shining in Cleveland | TribLIVE.com
Steelers/NFL

First Call: Steelers open as underdogs in Indy, somehow still in playoff spot; Joe Flacco shining in Cleveland

Tim Benz
Tim Benz

Sponsored by:

Mike's Beer Bar
6853189_web1_PickensCO
AP
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver George Pickens catches a pass against Indianapolis Colts cornerback Brandon Facyson during a game on Nov. 28, 2022, in Indianapolis.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are a train wreck right now. But, somehow, in the wake of all the other NFL results in Week 13, they are still in a playoff position.

In Monday’s “First Call,” we get into how that’s possible.

Plus, we look at the Steelers’ opponent next week. We also analyze Joe Flacco’s rise in Cleveland. And we recap some good weekend results for Robert Morris hockey and the Duquesne women’s hoops team.

How is that possible?

Despite their wretched back-to-back losses against the Arizona Cardinals and New England Patriots, the Steelers have emerged from Week 13 still in a playoff position.

Mike Tomlin’s team has gone from 6-3 to 7-6. But five other AFC teams are also 7-6, and the Steelers are the best of the bunch when it comes to tiebreakers. So that has them in the sixth seed (second wild card) right now.

By virtue of their 31-27 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars Sunday, the Browns have improved to 8-5, and they hold the top wild-card slot. Tight end David Njoku had a big day for the Browns.

Njoku ended up with 91 yards and two touchdowns on six catches. They host the Chicago Bears next week.

The Indianapolis Colts (7-6) currently hold the third and final wild-card spot despite dropping a 34-14 decision in Cincinnati (7-6) on Sunday.

The Steelers’ next two opponents are the Colts in Indy on Saturday, Dec. 16 and the Bengals at Acrisure Stadium Saturday, Dec. 23. Via ESPN.com’s Seth Walder, the Steeler’s playoff chances are at just 34%, fourth best of the six teams at 7-6.

Related:

• Madden Monday: There's a difference between firing Mike Sullivan and firing Mike Tomlin
• Tim Benz: Steelers’ back-to-back losses made history, but we've seen this before
• Late-season collapses not foreign to Steelers, coach Mike Tomlin

A look ahead

The Colts are 2.5-point favorites over the Steelers, according to ESPN Bet.

The Colts allowed 385 yards in total offense to the Bengals. But they did a decent job on Ja’Marr Chase, who had just 29 yards on three catches. In general, Bengals backup quarterback Jake Browning had a good day, putting up a 122.7 passer rating on 18 of 24 attempts for 275 yards and two touchdowns.

Neither team was sharp on third downs. Both went 3 of 11. But the Colts were heavily penalized, getting flagged nine times for 66 yards. They also had just 46 yards rushing, failed to sack Browning at all, and averaged just 5.4 yards per pass. Plus, kicker Matt Gay missed a field goal and a PAT.

On the positive front for the Colts, Michael Pittman had eight catches for 95 yards, and Ronnie Harrison had a pick-6.

The Steelers have won eight in a row against the Colts. Indy last won a game in the matchup back in 2008.

Flacco focus

New Browns quarterback Joe Flacco is at the center of some embarrassing stats for the Steelers. Both of which were unearthed by CBS Sports.

Flacco ended up 26 of 45 for 311 yards and three touchdowns in the Browns’ win over Jacksonville. He was intercepted once and only sacked one time, leading to a passer rating of 92.

After the game, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski announced that the team’s intention is to have Flacco be the starter for the rest of the season.

A long time comin’

The first year back to competition for the Robert Morris men’s hockey team has been a real challenge. They entered this week’s schedule 2-11-3.

But the Colonials enjoyed their best week of their reincarnation, sweeping a series against Niagara. RMU won the first game 4-1 on Neville Island on Thursday. Then they grabbed the back end of the home-and-home at Niagara on Saturday, 3-1.

Fox Chapel’s Chad Veltri made 88 saves over the two games, and captain Rylee St. Onge had his first two goals, snapping a season-long drought. Also, Matthew Boczar and Gabe Lunn scored their first college goals.

Coach Derek Schooley’s team hosts Arizona State on Saturday (7 p.m.) and Sunday (5 p.m.) this weekend.

Extra minutes

The Duquesne women’s basketball team won a double overtime game on Sunday. They took out Kent State 89-82 to improve to 5-3. It’s the second consecutive victory in extra time for the Dukes. They beat Fordham back on Dec. 5, 75-73 in OT.

Chartiers Valley product Megan McConnell played all 50 minutes. She had 20 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and two steals.

McConnell was one of five Dukes in double digits. They next play Tuesday at home against Longwood.

Tim Benz is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tim at tbenz@triblive.com or via X. All tweets could be reposted. All emails are subject to publication unless specified otherwise.

Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.

Get Ad-Free >

Categories: Sports | Steelers/NFL | Breakfast With Benz
Sports and Partner News