If you had been told at the beginning of the season that only two teams in the AFC would start out 5-0, your mind probably wouldn’t have gone straight to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans. Yet, after six weeks of the season, every other team in the conference has been beaten, and only the Steelers and Titans remain perfect. While both teams were expected to contend for a playoff spot this season, neither was considered a serious contender for the Super Bowl–which begs the question, six weeks later… can one of these teams legitimately go all the way?
One team and one team only will go 6-0. The Steelers and Titans face off next week to make up their game from Week 4 that was postponed due to the Titans’ coronavirus outbreak. While a 6-0 start may seem insurmountable for opponents at least in the division race, that certainly isn’t the case for Pittsburgh.
Tough games ahead for Pittsburgh
The Steelers still need to contend with the Ravens for the division title and a top-four seed in the playoffs. Those two teams haven’t met this year, and Baltimore’s only loss in six games has come against the Chiefs (not coincidentally, the two heaviest preseason favorites in the conference). Baltimore has dominated most of its other games, and its two meetings with the Steelers in Weeks 8 and 12 could very well decide the division–and possibly even the top seed.
Can the Titans beat the big boys?
Tennessee has the luxury of playing in a much weaker division, and with two teams already 1-5 in the AFC South, the only one with any hope of catching the Titans is the Indianapolis Colts–who have flown under the radar to a 4-2 record but have yet to face significant opposition. Tennessee’s bigger obstacle will be repeating its playoff run from last year and overcoming the same Chiefs team that stopped them in the AFC Championship Game.
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While next week’s game will provide more answers, both teams will still be at the top of the futures odds for a few weeks given how they’ve started the season. It’s hard to call them Super Bowl favorites at this point with Kansas City still atop its division and the Ravens undefeated against everyone else. But the Steelers and Titans are certainly two teams to keep your eyes on for the rest of the season, and don’t be surprised to see either or both of them winning football games in January.
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