The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t won a playoff game since January 22, 2017, when they defeated the Kansas City Chiefs by the narrow score of 18-16 in the Divisional Round. And if the Steelers’ dismal defeat by the Chiefs at Acrisure Stadium on Christmas Day is any indication, the Black-and-gold aren’t likely to break their losing streak this season.

In a game dominated by the reigning SB champs from the opening kickoff, the 29-10 outcome was never in any significant doubt. The Steelers followed a pattern similar to the one witnessed in their previous two defeats — with the defense yielding points early and ultimately failing to hold up without adequate support from the offense. On the Steelers’ first offensive series, Russell Wilson narrowly avoided a costly turnover when he recovered his own fumble on a third-down sack — a play which otherwise would have set up the Chiefs for a quick score. Following their 25-yard punt return, the Chiefs took advantage by completing an 8-play, 42-yard TD drive which was poorly defended by the Steelers.

Wilson’s pattern of taking sacks that put the offense in difficult down-and-distance situations continued on the Steelers’ second possession, when he lost 10 yards on a 2nd-and-8 play and the Steelers went 3-and-out. Following a 7-play, 79-yard TD drive by the Chiefs, the Steelers found themselves on the short end of a 13-0 score. Then, on their next possession, the Steelers drove the ball 59 yards before an apparent, 8-yard TD run by Jaylen Warren was nullified by a holding call on Darnell Washington. On the next play, Wilson threw the ball down the middle into heavy coverage and his pass was intercepted in the end zone by the Chiefs’ Justin Reid.

In particular, this drive was emblematic of the key errors at crucial points of the game which prevented the Steelers from seriously challenging Kansas City, Baltimore or the Eagles in consecutive games. While the Steelers briefly made the game competitive — scoring their lone TD in the second quarter to trail the Chiefs by only six points at halftime — they largely fell apart in the second half, managing to score only three points and continuing to yield chunks of yardage to Patrick Mahomes and company.

After the teams exchanged FG drives in the third quarter, the Chiefs scored a TD on an 11-play, 77-yard drive to extend their lead to 22-10. On the Steelers’ ensuing possession, Pat Freiermuth fumbled along the sideline on the first series at the Steelers’ 35-yard line after catching a 10-yard pass from Wilson. Four plays later, at the beginning of the final quarter, the Chiefs scored another TD to extend their lead to the final margin of 29-10.

At that point, everyone knew the game was over and the only offense the Steelers could muster was a 9-play, 43-yard drive against the Chiefs’ prevent-defense which ended with the Steelers turning the ball over on downs with 10 minutes remaining on the clock.

Mahomes badly out-dueled Wilson, passing for approximately twice as many yards (320) and three TDs. The Chiefs rushed for a total of only 69 yards and their leading rusher, Kareem Hunt, notched only 20 yards. But the receiving trio of Travis Kelce, Xavier Worthy and Justin Watson compiled 223 yards on 18 catches. Some of the most telling stats were that the Steelers never sacked Mahomes and notched a total of only two QB hits.

While the Steelers finished the game with a marginal advantage in time of possession, their offense accomplished very little — converting only 25% of their Red Zone opportunities compared to the Chiefs’ 80% success rate. The Steelers offense committed two turnovers while their defense didn’t get any takeaways.

When the Cincinnati Bengals come to town next weekend, they’ll be hungry for a win and will be facing a Steelers team clearly reeling and searching for answers. Whatever abilities he might bring to the table, the past three defeats against quality competition have confirmed that Russell Wilson cannot be considered as either the short- or long-term answer to Pittsburgh’s QB dilemma.

If Wilson leads this offense into the playoffs, the probability is high that we’ll see a repeat of the futility displayed during the past three games. In his postgame press conference, Mike Tomlin reiterated that he doesn’t intend to keep following the same course while expecting a different result. And if the Steelers are to have any realistic chance of advancing beyond the first playoff game, the most obvious way for Tomlin to shake up the sluggish offense would be to name Justin Fields — assuming he’s physically ready — as the starter to close out the season. Fields would need at least one full game under his belt to shake off the rust and prepare himself to start in the playoffs. He needs to start against the Bengals in the final, regular-season game and then again in the first playoff game.

As things now stand, the Steelers will need nothing short of a miracle to advance in the NFL playoffs. The most likely outcome under the current circumstances probably would be another one-and-done playoff showing. Perhaps the most troubling aspect of the team’s late-season swoon is that it practically guarantees the Steelers won’t finish this season with any more certainty at the QB position than they had last season at the same stage.

We’ve seen enough football this season to recognize that the body of evidence strongly suggests the Steelers must implement significant changes if they hope to field a realistic playoff contender. Because the defense had been playing at a high level prior to losing some key players due to injury, its recent struggles can be viewed as a temporary and correctable issue.

On the other hand, the team’s offensive issues are more difficult to resolve. The offense has struggled consistently throughout most of the 2024 season, especially in terms of capitalizing on Red Zone opportunities and putting enough points on the scoreboard. Giving Fields the starting nod at least offers a potential spark — given his greater mobility and potential as a younger player to develop into the kind of QB the Bears believed they were getting when he was drafted.

While some fans have already written off Fields as a potential franchise QB, it’s obvious now that the Steelers have learned everything they need to know about Wilson’s capabilities and shortcomings. The past three losses have confirmed that it’s time now for Coach Tomlin to find out, not only how well Fields responds to the big stage of a playoff game, but also whether Fields has what it takes to lead his team moving forward.