Once-Daunting Stretch of Steelers' Schedule Now Looking Easier

When the NFL's fixers put together the 2015 schedule in the spring, one thing jumped out immediately about the Pittsburgh Steelers' 16-game slate: It was going to be tough, particularly the six games which follow the team's Week 11 bye. 

Of those six games, five are against 2014 playoff teams. Four of the six are on the road. And with three of the AFC North's four teams—the Steelers included—reaching the postseason in 2014, it seemed like Pittsburgh would need to be nearly flawless headed into the post-bye stretch in order to amass enough wins to reach the playoffs yet again as part of a highly competitive division.

What a difference a few months make.

Though the Steelers are currently 6-4, they are in possession of the AFC's fifth playoff spot. And the six games they have remaining are suddenly looking far less daunting than they did when the schedule was first released to the public. Though none of these opponents can be overlooked, Pittsburgh is much better set up for late-season success thanks to many of these once-tough teams faltering for various reasons.

Opponent	W-L**	Off. YPG	Rank	Def. YPG	Rank	Off. PPG	Rank	Def. PPG	Rank
@ SEA	5-5	352.0	18th	303.3	2nd	22.1	T-20th	19.9	7th
vs. IND	5-5	353.7	15th	394.2	28th	22.2	19th	25.2	22nd
@ CIN	8-2	376.1	7th	338.8	11th	26.1	5th	16.9	1st
vs. DEN	8-2	331.7	28th	277.3	1st	22.8	T-17th	18.7	3rd
@ BAL	3-7	361.7	10th	369.7	20th	23.3	T-15th	26.2	25th
@ CLE	2-8	335.8	26th	407.3	29th	18.6	27th	27.7	30th
PIT	6-4	384.9	6th	371.4	22nd	23.6	13th	19.1	5th

Pittsburgh's first opponent after the bye is the Seattle Seahawks, a team that has been to the previous two Super Bowls, with one win. But this isn't the same Seahawks team that spent 2013 and 2014 looking nearly invincible. 

The offensive line has been porous this year, leading to Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson being sacked 33 times. The mobile Wilson also has no rushing touchdowns on the season, typically one of the team's biggest not-so-secret weapons.

Tight end Jimmy Graham, the team's big offseason acquisition, is not being used the same way as he was in his time with the New Orleans Saints; he has just two touchdowns on the year and averages 54.6 yards per game. As such, the Seahawks have a 5-5 record.

While this does not mean that the Seahawks will be an easy out, given that the defense ranks second in yards per game allowed and seventh in points per game ceded, Pittsburgh's ability to move the ball in the air and on the ground could present the Seahawks with a type of challenge they haven't experienced much this year.

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Add into the equation Pittsburgh's ever-strengthening pass rush that has totaled 28 sacks already this season, and it could be a rough day for the Seahawks; the opposite seemed to be the case when the schedule was released.

In Week 13, the Steelers play host to the Indianapolis Colts in a Sunday-night contest, and it's looking ever more likely that Matt Hasselbeck and not Andrew Luck will be under center. Luck is currently sidelined for two to six weeks with a partially torn abdominal muscle and a lacerated kidney. As of last week he was not participating in any level of physical activity.

Luck has already missed time with a shoulder injury, but his absences aren't the only reason why the Colts are 5-5 in a struggling AFC South division. There's also the matter of the Colts being unable to run the ball with any consistency, the defense struggling to hold opponents to minimal yardage and an overall lack of scoring. The defense also has just 13 combined sacks this year while giving up 16 passing scores. The Colts' collective weaknesses play directly into the hands of Pittsburgh's strengths.

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The only two true challenges that await the Steelers come in Weeks 14 and 15, when they travel to Cincinnati to face the Bengals before returning home to face the Denver Broncos, opponents who both currently have 8-2 records.

The Bengals are easily one of the top all-around teams in the league at present, not only ranking in the top 11 in yards and points per game scored but also in points and yards allowed to their opponents. Cincinnati is also a complete team, one that can pass the ball, run it well—especially in the red zone—and routinely hold opponents to under 17 points per game, including 10 points allowed in Weeks 8, 9 and 10.

But when the Bengals faced the Arizona Cardinals' offense in Week 11, one comparable in explosiveness to the Steelers', they gave up 34 points. And, for what it's worth, the Steelers have a 12-2 record when facing the Bengals in Cincinnati dating back to 2002.

Meanwhile, the Broncos also boast a strong defense, ranking first in yards per game allowed and third in points. But there are cracks forming in Denver's defensive facade, with an average of 22.0 points given up over its previous three games—a number significantly higher than the 18.7 points it has been giving up on average throughout the year.

With the Steelers averaging 23.6 points per game on the year, and the Broncos also allowing over 30 more yards per game on the road than at home, the Steelers at least have an on-paper, by-the-numbers advantage over Denver granted that Ben Roethlisberger can get passes out quickly and accurately enough when facing pressure.

There's also the matter of Denver's quarterback situation to consider. Brock Osweiler got the starting nod in Week 11, replacing Peyton Manning, who is recovering from foot and rib injuries and didn't even travel to Chicago for the Broncos' meeting with the Bears.

While the Broncos may feel like Osweiler gives them the best chance to protect their record and their AFC West lead, there's still quite a difference between facing Osweiler and the seen-it-all Manning. The advantage clearly leans toward Pittsburgh's defense should Osweiler remain under center for the next few weeks.

Though Pittsburgh's final two regular-season games are on the road this year, they are against teams that shouldn't pose them any significant challenges. Both the Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns are playoff irrelevant with three and two wins, respectively. And the Browns have already opted to move on from quarterback Josh McCown in favor of Johnny Manziel.

The Ravens, meanwhile, are struggling on defense and reeling from injuries on offense, particularly the torn ACL (and possibly MCL) suffered by quarterback Joe Flacco on Sunday. The Ravens also lost running back Justin Forsett in the game to a broke arm and have been reeling from the season-ending Achilles tendon tear suffered by top receiver Steve Smith.

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The Ravens cannot be overlooked, though, for two key reasons. One, they've only been outscored by their opponents this year by a combined 23 points, never losing by more than eight in any game this season. And two: This is the Steelers' biggest rival, and the Ravens will be playing them to the best of their abilities even if they don't win another game this year with Matt Schaub as the quarterback.

Depending on what Pittsburgh's win-loss record looks like by Week 16 compared to the other AFC teams in the wild-card hunt, the Ravens could be in the position to serve as postseason spoilers for the Steelers. That's an opportunity that Baltimore will try to take full advantage of should it come to that.

Cleveland, though, won't likely be the team to spoil Pittsburgh's playoff hopes; Cleveland continues to be one of the league's worst teams on both offense and defense, and switching quarterbacks may not do much to turn the tide at this late point in the season.

While there are potential minefields ahead as the Steelers work to remain in line for at least a wild-card playoff spot, the six-game slate ahead is not the murderers' row it first appeared to be. With the way that Pittsburgh is performing on both offense in defense compared to how its next six opponents are, the scales seem heavily tipped in the Steelers' favor.

On paper, at least, it doesn't look like the Steelers should lose more than two games. That would give them a 10-6 record and, given the state of the AFC as it stands now, more than enough wins to reach the postseason and seek yet another Super Bowl victory.