Mike Tomlin: Steelers motivated to get 'stench' off heading into season finale with Bengals

Standing in between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the postseason is the regular-season finale against the Cincinnati Bengals.

With the Steelers riding a three-game losing streak heading into that Saturday night matchup, coach Mike Tomlin said it’s important for his team to have momentum heading into the playoffs.

“We have to get the stench of the last few performances off of us,” Tomlin said Monday at his weekly news conference. “There’s no better way to do that than with a home divisional win over a formidable group heading into the tournament.”

The losses to Philadelphia, Baltimore and Kansas City not only have sent the Steelers reeling into the final week of the season, they no longer occupy first place in the AFC North. They ceded that position to the 11-5 Baltimore Ravens, who can clinch the division title with a home victory against the 3-13 Cleveland Browns. That game will be played in the Saturday afternoon window.

An unexpected loss by the Ravens will pave the way for the Steelers to win the division — and get a home playoff game with the No. 3 seed — if they can stop the Bengals. Cincinnati (8-8) has won four in row since dropping a 44-38 decision to the Steelers on Dec. 1. A win by the Bengals also would keep them in the hunt for the AFC’s final wild-card spot.

“They are a motivated group trying to play their way into this tournament, but we’re a motivated group, to be quite honest with you,” Tomlin said.

Once 10-3 and in control of the AFC North, the Steelers are trying to recover from double-digit losses to the Eagles, Ravens and Chiefs within an 11-day span. They are faced with three playoff scenarios:

• A home playoff game as the No. 3 seed against the Los Angeles Chargers.

• A playoff trip to Houston as the No. 5 seed. That would occur if the Ravens and Steelers each win Saturday.

• A playoff trip to Baltimore as the No. 6 seed. That would be the destination if the Steelers lose to the Bengals and the Chargers defeat the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

“Everyone has to realize what is at stake,” inside linebacker Patrick Queen said Monday. “Understand that it’s one and done. There’s no room for error, no mistakes. We have to go out and play a complete game. The best way to practice that is to start this week.”

After the Steelers lost 29-10 at home on Christmas to the Chiefs, several players on defense talked about teammates being out of position or missing assignments, issues safety DeShon Elliott said should not happen so late in the season. Opponents averaged 30 points and more than 400 yards against the Steelers the past three games.

Defensive captain Cameron Heyward and outside linebacker Alex Highsmith also cited issues of one or two players not doing their jobs.

“They bicker because they care, and we weren’t playing well,” Tomlin said. “Oftentimes the solution is born out of conflict and confrontation. I’m not going to let it be a big issue for us. It’s not.”

Still, Tomlin gathered his players for a meeting Thursday to clear the air about the problems that surfaced during the three-game losing streak.

“It’s sticking together,” Highsmith said Monday. “Drown out any negativity that is out there. Put our head down and keep working. That’s all you can do at this point. We lost those three games. It stinks. No one wants to lose three games in a row.”

Compounding the situation is that such late-season losing streaks are nothing new to the Steelers. For the fifth time in the past seven seasons, the Steelers have lost three in a row after Thanksgiving. And, of course, they have lost their past five playoff games dating to the 2016 postseason.

This regular-season streak, however, is historic. The Steelers were the first team since 1987 to be at least seven games over .500 and then lose three in a row by at least 14 points per game.

“We know how important this game is to get momentum going into the playoffs,” Highsmith said. “We know we have to win this game. … You see a lot of teams who are successful in the playoffs, and they usually are winning going toward the playoffs. We have to be playing our best ball during this time. Saturday is going to be a huge step for us to take.”