The Pittsburgh Steelers somehow made their way to the 2022 NFL Playoffs, but their time was cut short. Against the powerhouse that is the Kansas City Chiefs, Mike Tomlin and his team were simply outmatched. The result was an ugly 42-21 loss that put an end to Ben Roethlisberger's hopes of one last deep playoff run.
If you were to ask Mike Tomlin what went wrong for the Steelers, it's simple, via ESPN's Brooke Pryor:
“Game plans are irrelevant. We didn't execute well enough.”
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Tomlin's comments will likely rub a few Steelers fans the wrong way. The Steelers did not look like a team that deserved to be in the playoffs, as they were manhandled by Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs' surging offense. T.J. Watt's fumble return for a touchdown initially brought life to the team. However, their optimism was immediately shut down by touchdown after touchdown from the home team.
The Steelers making it this far was improbable on its own. The team needed a near-impossible Indianapolis Colts loss plus the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers not tying during Week 18 to make it to the playoffs. Through sheer luck, they were able to get these two things to happen and sneak into the postseason.
Their 2022 season now comes to a close, and with it comes the ending of Ben Roethlisberger's career. The Steelers' franchise quarterback has long hinted that this season would be his final one. While he unfortunately ends his career on a losing note, the fact that he was able to make it to the playoffs again was an incredible achievement on its own.
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