Steelers' Mike Tomlin Excited About Opportunity To Win A Playoff Game With Current Roster

The Pittsburgh Steelers are AFC North champions. After one of the wildest games of the regular season, the Steelers defeated the Baltimore Ravens 26-24 thanks to a last second missed field goal by the Ravens, giving the Steelers their first division title since 2020. All eyes now turn to the first round of the playoffs, in which the Steelers will host the Houston Texans in the Wild Card Round. Pittsburgh will have another opportunity to win their first postseason game since the 2016 season, and this could be one of their best opportunities yet. The Texans will be a tough team to take on, but the excitement about being here is at an all-time high in the Steel City.

No one seems to be more excited about the opportunity to go win in the playoffs than Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin at the moment. During his weekly press conference to the media, he was asked about how much a playoff win would mean to the team and the organization. Tomlin's answer reveals just how excited he is to go out and potentially get that playoff victory.

"You know, it's not about the organization or myself," Tomlin said. "It's about this collective, and quite frankly, most of these men don't care about the last, whatever years that you mentioned. Most of them are new to us, and so, that's where my focus is. I'm certainly not going to, you know, unpack my bags on the collective's bed, if you will. I'm excited about doing it this week, with this collective."

Tomlin's remark shows how he's not looking back on previous playoff failures. He wants to get this win against the Texans with this current roster, and he seems determined to send that message. There are definitely many players on this current team who deserve to win in the playoffs; guys like linebacker TJ Watt and defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, both of whom have had incredible seasons despite the bumps along the way. Heyward seems just as determined as Tomlin to win in the playoffs, and with more luck like the Steelers had on Sunday night against the Ravens, they can go out there and win the playoff game against the Texans. 

Surprisingly, Watt has never seen a playoff win in his entire career with the Steelers. His first playoff game was in 2017, which was the loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional Round at home. Tomlin's remark about winning a playoff game with this collective surely includes Watt, as there'd likely be nothing more that Tomlin would want than to get his best defensive player his first playoff win. Getting this victory will be a tough task, as the Texans have one of the best defenses in the league in terms of yards and points per game. The Steelers are going to have to find a way to score points on a tough defense, and rely on keeping the Texans offense off the field to tire out their defense, making life easier on the Steelers' offense. This is just one of many keys to victory the Steelers need to put into play to have a chance to accomplish Tomlin's goal.

Steelers Need To Take Advantage Of Texans' Inconsistent Offense

Despite how good the Texans defense is, their offense is incredibly inconsistent. They have some top tier playmakers on the offensive side of the ball, but they've had moments throughout the year in which they've struggled to put points on the board. This game could come down to a field goal, with very few points scored between both teams, so the Steelers will need to apply pressure early and often to keep the Texans' offense guessing and under duress.

What did you think about Tomlin's comments regarding winning a playoff game with this current team? Let us know in the comments below.

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