Steelers’ Disastrous Losing Streak Could Actually Signal New Outcome In Postseason

When the Pittsburgh Steelers dropped their third game in a row to the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day, the fan base and the media went wild. Immediately, cries went up that this was the same old Steelers; the earlier thoughts that this team was something special were erased. They went from being possible Super Bowl contenders at 10-3, to frauds who will lose in the first round once again. However, this team may be different, and everyone is just looking at this the wrong way.  

At least, that is what NFL Network analyst Kyle Brandt from Good Morning Football seems to think, according to a video he posted on X. He said that fans are understandably upset that they got "hammered" by these three teams. He adds that he hears fans calling this feeling "familiar," saying the team always seems to let them down when it counts. 

Steelers fans just expect more. They expect better from their coaches. Brandt said Head Coach Mike Tomlin is known for making all these great speeches and motivating players. Tomlin, according to Brandt, is now the "star" of Hard Knocks, but he needs to focus on showing he can make actual changes midstream during this mini-bye week. Brandt said that he prefers to look at the positives.

"All I would say is that the last few years of Mike Tomlin football with the Pittsburgh Steelers, they have ended the regular season on winning streaks," explained Brandt. "The last few years they have won two in a row, three in a row, and four in a row to end the regular season only to miss the playoffs or to lose by double digits in the first playoff game and get shocked and slapped around. Maybe it's good to hit rock bottom now and get that out of the way and flatten out like they have now. Maybe instead of getting sucker punched in the first round like they usually do, they are on the canvas now, looking for their mouthguard, with some time to fix it."

Brandt added that all of these theories have been flying around since the loss on Christmas Day. Players hint that some are unhappy with one or more of their teammates and blame them for the loss or losses.  

The Steelers have one more game left in the season against the Cincinnati Bengals. Brandt believes that after a couple of extra days off, quarterback Russell Wilson will be ready to attack the Bengals' softer defense, which should help him and the rest of the team get in the right mindset before the first round of the playoffs. 

Steelers' Mike Tomlin Didn't Pull Any Punches

While fans might be aggravated by Tomlin and complain that he isn't doing enough to force change on the team, Tomlin didn't make any excuses. In his postgame press conference, Tomlin called the way the team played "junior varsity."

That hasn't stopped the fans from calling for his head again this season. The belief of some is that once Tomlin gets his team above .500 in a season, he does a disappearing act and stops coaching. 

However, while there is always blame to be placed everywhere, most analysts agree that Tomlin isn't the chief issue. While Tomlin might need to look at himself or his assistant coaches in the mirror, many feel the issue was in execution rather than just from the head coach. 

Do you think Brandt could be on to something? Do the three losses signal something different than the usual wins? Click to comment below. 

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