The Steelers defeated the Browns 13-9 in a windy game in Cleveland late Sunday afternoon. The game wasn’t decided until the last play, as a late rally by Seneca Wallace and the Browns came up short; the Browns managed to stay in the game thanks to two late fumbles by Steelers running back Isaac Redman, who was playing in place of the injured Rashard Mendenhall.
As it turns out, the outcome of the game didn’t matter. The Baltimore Ravens (12-4) knocked off the Cincinnati Bengals to clinch the second playoff seed, which meant that the Steelers were stuck with the top Wild Card seed, which they would have taken even if they lost.
The Oakland Raiders are about to lose to the San Diego Chargers, which means that the Steelers will face the Denver Broncos, who are set to get the AFC West championship and the fourth seed despite a three-game losing streak and an 8-8 record. That’s a pretty good matchup for the Steelers, but obviously, it would have been even better to take a week off, given their long list of injuries.
Here are the final AFC playoff seeds.
1. New England Patriots
2. Baltimore Ravens
6. Cincinnati Bengals vs. 3. Houston Texans
5. Pittsburgh Steelers vs. 4. Denver Broncos
For more on the Steelers, check out Behind The Steel Curtain.