It seems kind of silly, but the fourth game of the season is a must win for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
At 1-2, the Steelers are hosting the 1-2 New York Jets at home and are favored to win the game.
It will be the last game they are favored for at least a month or more with a "murder's row" of teams facing Pittsburgh before the bye.
Here's who the Steelers play after Sunday.
October 9: At Buffalo Bills (currently 2-1)
October 16: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (currently 2-1)
October 23: At Miami Dolphins (currently 3-0)
October 30: At Philadelphia Eagles (currently 3-0)
"This is a must game, I'm serious about this, I don't like being this guy . . . this is a must win game, they gotta have it," said Adam Crowley on the Fourth Down in the Steel City podcast with Colin Dunlap talking about the Jets game.
"If they lose this game, the season's over and there should be full on house cleaning, there won't be but it should be meltdown mode if they lose this game," said Dunlap.
The Steelers offense is struggling but doesn't appear to be far off from clicking. The players believe they are close if they tweak some things.
This Sunday is the week the offense needs to get things clicking. The offensive line has been actually pretty good, yet can't get the run game going.
In Cleveland, they were unable to convert on third down, leading to the defense having to be on the field again and again, allowing the Browns to control time of possession, tiring out the defense.
The "Standard" in Pittsburgh is Super Bowls, and while head coach Mike Tomlin may still espouse that the feeling, many fans will be happy if the Steelers can go 3-5 into the bye week.
The second-half of the schedule isn't as dauting after the bye week, so a win on Sunday is critical if the Steelers hope to sneak into the playoffs.
