Before the year began, this season looked intimidating for the Pittsburgh Steelers. It appeared that they were going to have the hardest schedule in the NFL. That would be emphasized by the stretch of divisional games they faced to close out the year. At the moment, they’re in the middle of a four-game streak against the other AFC North teams. Results have been mixed, but Cam Heyward doesn’t want anyone to blame the schedule for any struggles the Steelers have had.
“When you look at our schedule, can’t change anything, can’t cry about it,” Heyward said Wednesday via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Twitter. “I think you look at it as, who’s next on the list? How can we get better? How can we improve from our last performance? Gotta make those weighty plays.”
Heyward’s sentiments echo those of Mike Tomlin. The Steelers’ leaders don’t care about their schedule. All they’re focused on is winning the next game. They have no control over who they play and when. All they can do is put their best effort forward every week.
Their schedule definitely isn’t ideal. That has nothing to do with who they play though. It’s more about the amount of punishment their bodies are going to take. These AFC North games are always tough. The past two weeks have proven that. Having four of them in a row is probably going to be taxing on the Steelers.
It isn’t like they get much of a break after this span of games either. They’ll end this stretch of divisional games with the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns. After that, they get rewarded with a trip to Philadelphia to play the Eagles. There won’t be anything soft or easy about that game.
Heyward is correct that there’s no use whining about any of this. It won’t change anything. If the Steelers perform well, they’ll be battle-tested for the playoffs. This year, they’ve been better than most people expected them to be. They’ll continue to have doubters, but all they can do is block out the noise and prove them wrong.
To be the best, you usually have to beat the best. The Steelers will have opportunities to do that. They aren’t perfect, but they’ve shown that they can be one of the best teams in the league. They just need to stay focused and put everything together.
