Steelers Get Clear Answer From Titans' Mike Vrabel On If He Wants To Help Pittsburgh's Playoff Chances

The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a rollercoaster of a 2023 season. There was an extremely rare in-season coaching change when Matt Canada was fired and not shortly after, the team went on a three-game losing streak. A 7-4 record quickly turned to 7-7 and the playoffs seemed nearly out of reach. Now, the group will enter Week 18 and it all starts with a Saturday bout versus the Baltimore Ravens. Winning this contest is the first piece to a puzzle that has a lot more clarity entering the season's final week. Fans will also desperately be rooting for the Tennessee Titans and Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

While there is a crazy scenario that involves the Steelers losing to Baltimore and still sneaking in, it would be much more beneficial to defeat the Ravens and hope either the Titans beat the Jacksonville Jaguars or Miami takes down the Buffalo Bills. Anything can happen in divisional games so Pittsburgh will pay close attention to the two games on Sunday.

A loss definitely would plummet Pittsburgh's playoff chances, however. While Tennessee has not been good throughout the 2023 campaign, no one should ever doubt a great head coach like Mike Vrabel. On Tuesday, he spoke to members of the media. A bold reporter, Gentry Estes, asked a question about winning and it helping going into the offseason. It quickly got on Vrabel's nerves. The Titans are 5-11 and a loss helps draft positioning, but Vrabel made it clear he despises being defeated, regardless of the situation.

"It s**ks to lose, Gentry. Did you have another though, or... I'm just curious. It fu**ing s**ks. Losing. Awful. That's why I want to win. You don't sleep. You wanna win for the players that bust their tail. It's not about, 'Hey, we'll go into the offseason on a good note.'"

Vrabel isn't worrying about the Steelers or anyone else outside of the Titans' building, but his team has to be fired up to play one more regular season game after hearing him stand by them despite a pretty horrible season.

While many fans think a Bills loss is the most likely outcome that gets Pittsburgh into the postseason, counting out the Titans would be a mistake. Tennessee got thumped by Jacksonville, 34-14 in Week 11, but nothing would be more satisfying for them than to beat a division rival and keep that team out of the hunt for the Lombardi Trophy.

If the Steelers can come up with a win in Baltimore, the Sunday Night Football matchup featuring Miami and Buffalo could mean absolutely nothing if the Jaguars end up falling to the Titans. No coach will openly root for losses to get a better draft pick. Vrabel's emphatic response to Estes leaves no doubt in the minds of Pittsburgh fans rooting for his team to come up with an upset win.

In the other contest, the Dolphins are currently a home underdog after getting throttled by the Bills by a score of 48-20 in Week 4. Both teams have evolved a ton since then and if Vrabel and his team can't back up his statements of desperately wanting to win, Steelers fans will be sweating it out on Sunday evening if Saturday ends in a win.

Steelers Will Lean On Mason Rudolph Once Again In Week 18

Despite reports that Kenny Pickett refused to be the backup in Week 17 against the Seattle Seahawks, the former first-round pick vehemently denied those rumors on Tuesday. He will serve as the second-stringer in Week 18 while Mason Rudolph will make his third conservative start. No one thought the season would come down to Rudolph's arm and a little help from the Titans and Dolphins, but that's exactly what has transpired. The hope is that Vrabel's comments fire his team up for Sunday.

Do you think the Titans can upset the Jaguars in Week 18? Let us know in the comments below!

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