Ben Roethlisberger, Steelers Clinch 2020 Playoff Berth as Chiefs Beat Dolphins

After missing the playoffs for two consecutive seasons, the Pittsburgh Steelers clinched a playoff spot on Sunday as the Kansas City Chiefs grabbed a 33-27 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

A year after having season-ending surgery on his elbow and leaving the Steelers to go 8-8 under Mason Rudolph, Ben Roethlisberger has returned to lead the Steelers to an 11-1 record, with 3,105 passing yards and 27 touchdown passes on 66.9 percent passing through Sunday. 

James Conner led the running game, posting 645 yards on 145 carries with five touchdowns, while Pittsburgh relied on a trio of wide receivers throughout the season so far. Rookie wideout Chase Claypool, who was selected in the second round out of Notre Dame, has totaled 649 yards and eight touchdowns on 47 receptions, while Diontae Johnson has posted a team-leading 654 yards and five scores. Juju Smith-Schuster has collected 600 yards on 73 receptions for six touchdowns. 

On the other side of the ball, the Steelers defense has limited opponents to 17.6 points per game, a league-low, allowing 300.5 yards per game. They lead the league with 44 sacks and 16 interceptions. 

This season's Pittsburgh crew became the first in franchise history to start the season with 10 victories and is the only team league-wide to go 10-0 in the past five seasons. In doing so, it was in good company; 18 teams have gone 10-0 since the introduction of the Super Bowl, according to NFL.com's Kevin Patra. Of those teams, 10 have made it to the championship, and six have won. 

Pittsburgh currently holds a two-game lead over the AFC North over the 9-3 Cleveland Browns, while also currently holding the tiebreaker, thanks to a 38-7 win in Week 6. Meanwhile, the Steelers are also battling with the Chiefs (12-1) for the top seed in the AFC.

Pittsburgh's remaining schedule features matchups against Buffalo, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and Cleveland.