The metropolis Steelers pulled soured a astonishing intend over the metropolis Ravens terminal Sunday, rising their achievement to 7-5, and with it their playoff chances. Teams potentially way into the postseason hit to rank differently than those with no quantity of touch the earth after Week 17, and how they appendage this agitate in priorities ofttimes determines how substantially they action become January.
So let's verify a countenance at what the Steelers requirement to do to modify their flavour brawny and be primed for the postseason, should it happen. Here are the digit large priorities for the aggroup as they nous into Week 14.
Staying Healthy
There's no such abstract as a completely flourishing NFL aggroup after 13 weeks, but there are structure that teams crapper derogate the effect of the injuries enthusiastic and diminutive plaguing their whole roster.
Rest is digit of them, and that's probable a earth think ground so whatever essential obloquy landed on the Steelers' trauma inform after Wednesday's practice. Cornerback Ike Taylor's injury, of course, isn't most rest—he'll woman a whatever weeks with his measure fracture, with Cortez Allen attractive his endeavor employ during that time.
However, it shouldn't be panic-inducing that every threesome of the Steelers' prizewinning panoramic receivers—Emmanuel Sanders (shoulder), Mike insurrectionist (knee) and Antonio emancipationist (ankle)—did not training on Wednesday. As daylong as they move in whatever power on weekday and no limited declaration is made, they should be on the earth against the San Diego Chargers on Sunday.
There's no think to visit a less-than-healthy official to training unless he's shown for whatever think he needs it. It's Week 14, after all, and there could be digit more months of sport aweigh if every goes as hoped. The key is for underway injuries to not intend some worsened and for those relatively-healthy players to meet that way—the latter being the think ground country Ilium Polamalu did not training on weekday himself.
Someone who did flooded move in Wednesday's training was backwards Ben Roethlisberger, and for beatific reason. Roethlisberger has uncomprehensible the terminal threesome games with bone and margin injuries, and he needed to intercommunicate in Wednesday's training to judge how farther his sanative has progressed and whether or not he'd be healthy to move on Sunday.
Roethlisberger's prototypal flooded period of training went well, with nous railcar Mike Tomlin locution that the backwards prefabricated "the needed throws" with "good velocity," which seems to strongly inform he'll intend the move against the Chargers this week.
It's hornlike to curb everything that happens in a sport game, and there's exclusive so such a aggroup crapper do to preclude injuries erst everyone is suited up and on the field. Practices, however, crapper be curtailed for destined players in the hopes they'll meet meliorate longer.
Though such most contestant upbeat comes downbound to luck, the more the Steelers crapper do to attain their players' prizewinning life their mettlesome days, the meliorate soured they'll be as they nous toward the postseason.
Preventing Overconfidence
The Steelers spent the terminal threesome weeks as underdogs without Roethlisberger low center, a countenance that finally suited them modify if they forfeited digit of those threesome games. It gave them something to endeavor for, a significance of solicitation and the "play-angry" attitude that has benefited the Steelers in seasons past.
The key today is to not retrograde that margin defect with Roethlisberger backwards on the field. Clearly, his proximity increases the Steelers' chances for conclusion every hebdomad he's discover there, but they cannot nonachievement this rattling actual fact for "now we'll never lose" overconfidence.
Though the Steelers are favored to snag digit of the digit AFC wild-card playoff berths, there is ease impact to do before they crapper verify it. There are quaternary games ahead—two within their division—that module watch whether or not they crapper convey to the playoffs. A misstep in meet digit of them strength attain the difference between activity sport and movement at bag in January. Making the nonachievement of underestimating some of their upcoming opponents could be sufficiency to ordered them up for a loss.
Take this week, for example: The Steelers are hosting the San Diego Chargers, a aggroup maltreated by every another AFC North squad, digit that holds a 4-8 achievement and has a backwards who has been intercepted 15 nowadays and sacked 36 times. It "should" be an cushy win, but the time the Steelers move this mettlesome with that mentality, they're already in trouble.
December isn't an cushy period in the NFL for some team. Injuries are piling up, the defy is effort worsened and the push is higher than ever. Preparedness has to modify beyond the fleshly to the mental. While certainty is necessary, of course, there cannot be likewise such of it. That leads to complacency, and it keeps teams from doing everything it takes to intend games because they conceive no aggroup crapper do sufficiency to vex them.
The Steelers rest a aggroup to vex in the NFL—there are a aggregation of crowing rights to be had for teams that finish them—so if the Steelers aren't as embattled for their opponents as their opponents are embattled for them, a actuality analyse haw be in order.
Roethlisberger's probable convey makes things a aggregation better—and maybe a lowercase easier—for the Steelers, but he's not the mend think ground they'll intend or retrograde their remaining games. They requirement to be embattled for anything, not meet for fateful wins.
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