The Debrief, Week 16: Steelers capable of reaching Super Bowl Published: Dec 19, 2016 at 04:56 PM Around The NFL Podcast Co-Host Christian Folin Women Jersey The have enjoyed more elegant wins against better teams, but in Paul Brown Stadium was the surest sign yet this Pittsburgh squad could reach the . Down 20-6 late in the first half against a team that treated the occasion like a playoff game, Pittsburgh came together to play 32 near-perfect minutes of complementary ball. The scored on five straight drives and held po se sion for 11:50 of the fourth quarter, keeping the ball away from Cincinnati like they were palming the noggin of their kid brother. The result: a typical playoff game, just three weeks early. " ," linebacker told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. I'm going to stop including an asterisk for teams that rely on close, come-from-behind victories. Luck is a factor in winning tight games all the time, but this is just how profe sional football works in 2016. Entering Week 15, more games were decided by eight points or fewer than in any other season in NFL history. The teams with the best records in one-score games -- the , , , and -- include three of the best teams in football. The most fourth-quarter comebacks have been authored by the (8), (7), (4) and (4). Teams be able to come from behind because that will be a requirement in January. Consider how different the would look following Week 15 if not for Sunday's fourth-quarter comebacks. The would be on the edge of extinction; the would be out of the mix for a bye; the sky would be falling in Dallas; and . The and also would be on life support if not for last-second heroics. All of these wild finishes serve as practice for the wild weeks ahead. This is a season , a season where nothing in the playoffs should surprise. If anything, the needed this game to prove they can pull it off. It was their first fourth-quarter comeback of the season and they likely will need a second one if they want to make it to Houston. Narratives that were busted 1) So much for the being a dead team walking after potentially losing for the season. Monday night's destruction of the could have been so much worse for Washington than the . While the decision to let go this season was a mistake, general manager Dave Gettleman did well with his second-round draft pick of cornerback . He's a keeper. The carried their late 2014 surge over into the 2015 season. Perhaps they can do it again. With Atlanta and Tampa Bay up next, the will help decide the NFC South. They look like a tougher out after two consecutive convincing wins. 2) Green Bay's running game is no longer a problem. The combination of and might truly be an a set down the stretch running behind the underrated offensive line. Montgomery gets better every week. The Bernie Parent Men Jersey converted running back has rare vision, waiting for holes to open to finish runs like a veteran. He's gone from a nice story to a legitimate difference-maker, just in time for the stretch run. , a free agent after the season, might not get his job back. 3) The notion that Bill O'Brien had to ride or die with until the bitter end never made sense. was O'Brien's and has been in O'Brien's system for three seasons. Perhaps there's a scenario where Osweiler improves with another offseason under his belt, but he clearly wasn't improving season. That's why O'Brien's moving forward was the only one he could make. There's no telling whether Savage can continue to spark the over the next few weeks, but O'Brien owes it to the rest of his organization to find out if he's real. If anything, we'd argue O'Brien wasted too many weeks to make the switch. 4) Perhaps the can find a pa s rush after all. One week after and made noise , played like a young . shutting down the chatter was ma sive Sunday night, but so was the performance by the ' defense. It stopped the Bucs in the fourth quarter alone, giving up only 10 yards (!) on five drives, while picking off twice. 5) One week after , the proved they can win defensive struggles, too. One of the best beat writers in the country, ESPN's Mike Rei s, called it the " " for the .The pride that and Bill Belichick took in winning in Denver was obvious because they played error-free, complementary football. They have both been around long enough to know they can't just win shootouts on the way to a title, especially without . New England's running game and defense are huge parts of the team's 12-2 record and have improved down the stretch. , , and represent the next generation of defenders filling in the gaps following the lo ses of and . A favorable schedule has played a huge role, but New England now ranks first in scoring defense. Extreme talent? The most eye-opening part of from the was a line tucked into the team's statement on the move. Owner Shad Khan wrote that general manager Dave Caldwell will be charged with "exploring all options to hire the best head coach po sible to lead what I feel is an extremely talented team and reward a very loyal and patient fan base in Jacksonville." The part Justin Braun Jersey about the fan base is on point. Retaining Caldwell is a bid for continuity and a show of conviction in the general manager's vision despite poor results. The part about an "extremely talented team" could be part of the problem. Self-scouting, an honest accounting of a roster, is critical in the NFL. The , like much of the media (myself included), were convinced this Jacksonville team was emerging for much of the Bradley/Caldwell era. The reality: No NFL team has won fewer games since 2013. Tangible progre s is hard to see when the high point of the era was a five-win season last year. Failing to win six games for six straight seasons, a run that predates Khan, is hard to accomplish in a league built for parity. The don't have a starting quarterback and they probably won't have a Pro Bowler when the team is announced Tuesday. ... linebacker ? there are promising young players like the team's talented receiver trio, shockingly led this season by . The defense can look forward to a future with Smith, rookie cornerback , free-agent pickup and safety . But you can find players to be optimistic about on nearly any downtrodden team. The lack depth or an offensive line. Their defensive players might not fit the next coach's system. It sometimes feels as if the Jags are better at convincing the media they have promising talent rather than actually building a talented roster. Putting this 2-12 me s all on Bradley isn't fair. Storylines that deserve more attention 1) He didn't get as much money as or the headlines of , but is a huge part of Big Blue's defensive dominance lately. He's the biggest reason the team has improved from No. 24 in yards-per-carry allowed to No. 3 this season. Stealing him from the was money well spent. 2) deserves a ton of credit for a in Kansas City that included three scoring drives. But the wouldn't have been in the game if not for their defense's ability to shut out the in the second half and minimize the damage of Tenne see's early turnovers. This has hardly been a shutdown unit, but it boasts strong individual performances this season by , and . The finish the season with Jacksonville and Houston, two limited offenses that Tenne see should be able to handle. Vive Claude Giroux Jersey le Dick LeBeau! 3) The ' offense has scored one touchdown in its last 10 quarters, a crazy development for a Gary Kubiak-led group. No wonder the team's still-excellent defense is . The need to win in Kansas City on Christmas or we'll have the first playoff field since 2003 without either of the previous season's teams. 4) linebacker has the ability to be a Defensive Player Nate Prosser Women Jersey of the Year at some point. When he gets on a roll, like he has over the last five weeks, he can dominate a game like few others. His best is better than almost any other linebacker's best, with being a notable exception. 5) The ' defense has improved partly by shortening their rotation. and got every single snap at outside linebacker during Sunday's win, while former starters and didn't play at all. 6) showed against the that he's good enough to win in Buffalo with enough help (Miami's much-maligned cornerbacks are playing much better, for example). It might only take one more win for this squad to get into the tournament. 7) The have to be concerned with their sluggish offense of late, especially . They have experienced two of their four lowest-scoring games in succe sive weeks against division opponents, including . Don't hand the division title and a playoff bye to them just yet. 8) The doomsday scenario for Detroit won't be overlooked locally, but the rest of the country might not realize how close the are to falling from 9-4 to out of the playoffs. The figure to be underdogs in their next two games against the and . If they lose both, Jim Caldwell's crew probably will be boxed out of a playoff berth. smells like the most obvious candidate to be NBC's "Sunday Night Football" regular-season finale. This article has been reproduced in a new format and may be mi sing content or contain faulty links. Please use the Contact Us link in our site footer to report an i sue.
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