Steelers Enter the Playoffs With Momentum and Belief Against the Texans

Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier once aspired to “be like the Kevin Garnett of football,” an homage to the basketball Hall of Famer’s versatility.

Nowadays, every player and coach wearing black and gold arguably wants to channel KG, if only to remind themselves that “ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!”

Pittsburgh enters the postseason with more momentum than it has in recent memory after edging the rival Baltimore Ravens 26-24 in Week 18 to earn the division title. Armed with a rousing, de facto playoff victory and the clean slate it created, the Steelers thirst for more.

“We are AFC North champions, and that sounds good and it feels good,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “But we didn’t come here for that.”

The fourth-seeded Steelers will host the fifth-seeded Houston Texans on Monday night in the finale of Super Wild Card Weekend. Houston has won nine straight games – though only two by multiple scores – and is an early betting favorite behind a defense that led the NFL in fewest yards per game allowed (277.2) while forcing the second-most turnovers (17).

While Pittsburgh’s offense sputtered at times down the stretch – the winner-take-all showdown with the Ravens wouldn’t have been necessary had the Steelers won at lowly Cleveland the week before – the attack will get top wide receiver DK Metcalf back from a two-game suspension.

That amounts to a full arsenal for veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers, whose fourth-quarter heroics against Baltimore validated his one-year contract.

“That’s part of it, being the old guy, having a lot of gray in your beard,” Rodgers said. “They expect things from you, and it’s nice to be able to deliver in moments like that.”

Metcalf might have darted under Rodgers’ game-winning touchdown pass with 55 seconds to go if not for his recent conduct detrimental to the NFL.

Alas, it was Calvin Austin III, recently returned from a hamstring injury, who made the clutch catch. And looked on with teammates as Ravens rookie kicker Tyler Loop sent a would-be, game-winning 44-yard field goal wide right as time expired.

Tuned in from home with bated breath, Metcalf admitted “I couldn’t watch some moments because of my anxiety getting too high.”

Not so much for the guys who dressed for the game. With Rodgers guiding the offense and veteran leaders Cam Heyward and T.J. Watt sparking the ‘D,’ Pittsburgh delivered in the clutch.

In an AFC that isn’t exactly steeped in postseason execution beyond sixth-seeded Buffalo, who couldn’t envision the Steelers taking this season for a longer spin?

The slate from a 10-7 regular season may be fresh, but the experience carries over.

“I think we just have a lot of guys who understand the importance of the moment and understand how rare it is to be exactly where we are and just appreciate the moment,” Watt said. “When those big-time plays are to be made, the majority of the time we have been able to make them.”

Pittsburgh brings Rodgers’ rhythm and a fast, opportunistic defense that ranked in the top six in sacks and turnovers in the regular season.

Garnett’s famous refrain might motivate any club in the playoff field, of course.

The Steelers’ new life simply feels different.