Steelers' Rooting Guide for NFL Playoff Implications of Week 9

The Pittsburgh Steelers sit in a terrific spot in the AFC playoff standings entering Sunday's Week 9 games.

Pittsburgh's win over the Tennessee Titans on Thursday night pushed it into the top wild-card position ahead of the Buffalo Bills and Cleveland Browns.

The Steelers also have their eyes on the AFC North race. They can gain ground on the Baltimore Ravens if the current divisional leader loses on Sunday.

Mike Tomlin's team holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over Baltimore from its Week 4 home win. The two sides can't be tied after Week 9, but the closer the two teams are to each other, the more it will benefit the Steelers after the Ravens hit their bye week.

Pittsburgh's rooting interests across the AFC wild-card race are more complicated to figure out.

The Steelers would love to stay in front of the Buffalo Bills, but they may be okay with a Buffalo win since it would hand another loss to an AFC North rival.

Seahawks over Ravens

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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - OCTOBER 29: Jaxon Smith-Njigba #11 of the Seattle Seahawks carries the ball during the fourth quarter of the game against the Cleveland Browns at Lumen Field on October 29, 2023 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jane Gershovich/Getty Images)

Pittsburgh's first rooting interest should be clear.

The Ravens are ahead of the Steelers by one game in the win column.

A home loss by Baltimore against the Seahawks would put the Steelers a half-game back of the AFC North lead entering Week 10.

Sunday starts a tough stretch for the Ravens, who face the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns in Weeks 10 and 11 before a Sunday night battle with the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 12.

Pittsburgh has to play Cleveland and Cincinnati in Weeks 11 and 12, but before that, it takes on the Green Bay Packers at home in Week 10.

There is potential for a two-game swing on top of the AFC North if Baltimore loses to Seattle and the Week 9 results are replicated in Week 10.

Bills over Bengals

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ORCHARD PARK, NY - OCTOBER 26: Josh Allen #17 of the Buffalo Bills walks across the field during an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Highmark Stadium on October 26, 2023 in Orchard Park, New York. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Getty Images)

The Steelers need to worry more about the AFC North than the wild-card race at this point of the season.

Any loss by one of its divisional competitors is more important because all the AFC North teams are within two games of each other.

Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills can help the Steelers by handing the Bengals their fourth defeat of the season.

A Bengals loss could send them into a bit of a spiral since the Ravens and Steelers could beat them in Weeks 10 and 11.

Buffalo is expected to be in the wild-card race all season long, so the Steelers can worry about the Bills losing later in the campaign.

The Bills still have to play the Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys and Miami Dolphins, so a handful of defeats could benefit the Steelers later in the season when the wild-card race heats up.

Chargers over Jets

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INGLEWOOD, CA - OCTOBER 29: Derwin James Jr. #3 of the Los Angeles Chargers defends in pass coverage during an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears at SoFi Stadium on October 29, 2023 in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)

If the Steelers do care about the wild-card race, they would prefer if the Los Angeles Chargers beat the New York Jets.

That result would drop the Jets to 4-4 and move the Chargers up to that same mark.

The Chargers may be viewed as the tougher potential foe in the wild-card race, but both teams playing on Monday night have flaws.

Los Angeles has been inconsistent at times on offense and New York may not have enough offensive firepower with Zach Wilson at quarterback.

A Chargers win is the most realistic result the Steelers can hope for in Week 9. it seems unlikely that the Arizona Cardinals will go on the road to upset the Cleveland Browns. Pittsburgh can take care of its Cleveland problem next week by winning the season series.