Pittsburgh Steelers' Playoff Hopes Remain Alive After Win over Texans

We have all come to understand just how tenuous playoff positioning is in the NFL. This is no more evident than in the competitive AFC North. With the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Monday night victory over the Houston Texans, 30-23, Pittsburgh has positioned itself well for the next leg of this marathon that is the NFL regular season.

David Todd of ESPN 970 tweeted about the importance of Pittsburgh's upcoming five-game stretch:

"

#Steelers 7-7 in last 14 @ Heinz. Huge opportunity w next 3 at home, then #Jets #Titans road. Win 4 of 5, in playoffs. lose 4/5, season over

— David Todd (@DavidMTodd) October 20, 2014"

Is Pittsburgh in a sound spot for a playoff run in the second half of the year? And if so, what can it do to make it happen?

As of the Monday night win; here is what the AFC North race looks like.

Baltimore Ravens	5-2	.714
Cincinnati Bengals	3-2-1	.583
Pittsburgh Steelers	4-3	.571
Cleveland Browns	3-3	.500

And the current AFC playoff picture looks like this:

Division Leaders

• New England Patriots 5-2
• Baltimore Ravens 5-2
• Indianapolis Colts 5-2
• Denver Broncos 5-1

Wild Card

• San Diego Chargers 5-2
• Cincinnati Bengals 3-2-1

Just Missed the Cut

• Buffalo Bills 4-3
• Pittsburgh Steelers 4-3

This might not feel like the best situation, but the reality is that the Steelers are in a great spot to make the playoffs. Sitting only a half-game out, their present third-place position in the AFC North really illustrates just how strong the division is.

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Another thing working in the Steelers’ favor is that they have two more at home before hitting the road again against lesser opponents. This win against the Texans is even more important, because it'll some tough sledding the next two games—even though both contests are at Heinz Field.

Pittsburgh is going to get the Indianapolis Colts and Baltimore Ravens the next two weeks. Let’s hope that the aggressive defense Pittsburgh put showcased Monday night will be on full display against the Colts and Ravens, because it is going to need it.

Nevertheless, this is the NFL, and Pittsburgh has a real opportunity to position itself well at the midway point. Keep in mind that at this point of the 2013 season, Pittsburgh was 2-5 and still in the playoff hunt until the final weekend of the regular season.

By comparison, this year's Steelers are sitting pretty. How pretty? According to Warren Sharp of the @sharpfootball Twitter account, the odds aren’t great, but getting better.

"

With that win, the Steelers improved odds to make the playoffs to roughly 23%. With that loss, the Texans fall to roughly 12%.

— Warren Sharp (@SharpFootball) October 21, 2014"

Maybe the best thing the Steelers have going for them is that both of their games against the Bengals are still on the schedule. If Pittsburgh can remain in striking distance, those two division games will carry a ton of weight at the end of the season. It wouldn't hurt if the Ravens would start losing either.

Al Bello/Getty Images

Can we take from Monday’s win that this team has turned the corner? Is this team more than just a three-minute whirling dervish of scoring?

I believe so. First and foremost, this team has a terrific talent at running back in Le’Veon Bell. Understanding that this team still belongs to quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, Bell's presence in the Pittsburgh backfield makes this offense incredibly dangerous.

I understand that Dallas Cowboys running back DeMarco Murray is on pace to be the league MVP, but aside from him, there’s not a more complete back in the league than Bell.

"

Le'Veon Bell first player in Steelers history to gain at least 100 yarsds from scrimmage in first seven games of a season.

— Scott Brown (@ScottBrown_ESPN) October 21, 2014 "

One thing you can count on is that late in the season, anytime after the bye in week Pittsburgh could be playing in nasty weather. Having a running back you can just turn and hand it off to, or toss to out of the backfield is the great equalizer for bad weather and poor field conditions. 

The best-case scenario now for the Steelers is to split with the Ravens and Colts in order to stay above .500 going into road games against the New York Jets and Tennessee Titans.

If the Steelers want to make the playoffs, winning the games they are supposed to win is paramount. If Pittsburgh can go into the bye at 7-4, they might be staring at a chance for a solid playoff run, with three of their final five games at home.

All team data courtesy of NFL.com.