On the most recent episode of the Steelers Stat Geek podcast, I dove into an idea presented by Coach KT Smith in regards to the outcome of games the week after the Steelers play the Baltimore Ravens. Taking this idea and expanding upon it into several different categories, I was able to find several places on the Steelers schedule where they are more likely to get a victory as well as the chance of winning being greatly reduced.

I looked at games from the last 10 years for the Steelers, which dates back to the 2014 season. Initially looking at games that came after certain events, I also looked at others just to get a better feel. Some categories are quite broad while others are a little more specific. There may be other small categories that I did not specifically dive into, but these were the ones I came across which stood out.

After looking at the worst spots on the schedule yesterday, it’s now time to look at the five best spots on the Steelers schedule where they have the highest winning percentage. For reference sake, in regular season games the last 10 years, the Steelers have a winning percentage of 0.632 overall.

After Thursday Night Football (.818)

Since 2014, the Steelers are 9–2 following Thursday night games. Having the “mini bye“ has been very advantageous, but not as much in recent years. Over the last two seasons, the Steelers are 1–2 following a Thursday night game after winning the previous eight games. So this is their top spot, it isn’t as much the recent trend.

After Playing Cleveland (.786)

Of all the AFC North opponents, the Steelers have the best record in weeks after they play the Cleveland Browns. At 11–3 not including playoff games, this number would drop to .722 as the Steelers have a 2–2 playoff record after facing the Browns the final week of the season. Still, it’s a noteworthy statistic.

Prime time home games (.773)

With the Steelers coming in just above .500 when on the road in prime time, their home record is significantly better. At 17–5, the Steelers are a tough matchup other NFL teams would like to avoid playing under the lights in Pittsburgh. These games include all 7 PM EST or later kickoff times regardless of day of the week.

After playing Cincinnati (.765)

Coming in not far behind the Browns is the Steelers record after facing the Bengals the previous week. At 13–4, the Steelers are 1– 1 in each season over the last three years the week after facing the Bengals.

After the Bye Week (.700)

While this is not surprising that the Steelers have a good record following the bye week, I thought it would be even better. What is hurting the Steelers was from 2014 to 2016 they lost all three of those games coming off of there bye. But since then, the Steelers have a seven game winning streak in the week following their off week.

So there are some of the better spots on the Steelers schedule when it comes to their winning percentage. Of course, these categories could be broken down even more or others could be studied where the Steelers could have even better results. Perhaps once the schedule has been officially released I will dive into specific situations during the remainder of the 2024 offseason.