By the time the Pittsburgh Steelers kick off against the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday night, they will already know if they have been eliminated from contention for the AFC North.
The NFL released the full schedule for Week 18 late Sunday night and they have the Cleveland Browns vs the Baltimore Ravens in the afternoon slot on Saturday, January 4 and the Steelers vs Bengals game to follow in prime time.
If the Ravens beat the Browns, the Steelers cannot win the AFC North, even with a win over the Bengals. Unfortunately, with those two games being on Saturday, the Steelers cannot try to strategize at all for a more comfortable seeding for the first round of the playoffs.
If the Ravens win, the Steelers will go on the road for their playoff game but until the full Sunday night slate wraps up, they won’t know for sure where they are traveling and who they will be playing.
