Cameron Heyward gave a cockeye glare as I noted the Pittsburgh Steelers’ playoffs predicament: They haven’t beaten a team this season that has qualified for the playoffs, yet now need to beat the team with the NFL’s best record to qualify.

The Steelers defensive captain shrugged his shoulders.

“So?”

The defiance was followed by silence.

So what if the Steelers’ postseason prospects are down to needing to beat the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday afternoon at M&T Stadium? So what if the Ravens (13-2) are riding an 11-game winning streak into the season finale?

“The best we can do is,” Heyward said, “give ourselves a shot.”

Heyward wasn’t talking about painkillers — although that’s precisely what should be prescribed to some Steelers fans after Sunday’s 16-10 loss at the New York Jets — but rather a shot at making the playoffs. The Steelers have defied the odds all season, so qualifying for the postseason would just be their latest unbelievable storyline.

And the Steelers believe they belong.

“Yes, sir,” Heyward said. “I know we’re going to need a little bit of help, but we’ve got to get going.”

The Steelers believe this, even though they have beaten only one team with a winning record — and the Los Angeles Rams (8-7) were just eliminated from playoff contention.

The Steelers believe this, even though six of their eight victories have come by single digits — and their average margin of victory is 8.8 points, despite double-digit wins over the Cincinnati Bengals and Miami Dolphins.

The Steelers believe this, mostly because they have played every opponent close this season except for the 33-3 loss in the opener at New England. And, for all of the quarterback controversy between rotating Mason Rudolph and Devlin “Duck” Hodges, that’s the only game that Ben Roethlisberger played start to finish.

The Steelers believe they belong because they have lost to the playoff-bound Seattle Seahawks (11-4) by two points, to the San Francisco 49ers (12-3) by four, to the Ravens by three in overtime and to the Buffalo Bills (10-5) by seven. They could have won any of those games, if not for a turnover here and a defensive letdown there.

So the Steelers have reasons to believe they are playoff worthy.

“I think so. I really do,” Steelers right guard David DeCastro said. “We can play with anybody if we don’t make mistakes.”

That’s a big if, but it’s a valid point.

So the Steelers believe. Do you?

Here’s why you should: The Steelers’ chances to beat the Ravens improved immensely with John Harbaugh’s announcement Monday that MVP favorite Lamar Jackson and fellow Pro Bowl picks Mark Ingram, Earl Thomas and Marshal Yanda, along with defensive tackle Brandon Williams, will sit out Sunday’s game.

You might feel better about the Steelers’ chances if Ravens Pro Bowl cornerbacks Marlon Humphrey and Marcus Peters were sitting out, with Hodges throwing six interceptions the past two games and Paxton Lynch likely promoted to the backup role.

You also might feel better if Steelers Pro Bowl center Maurkice Pouncey hadn’t been carted off the field at MetLife Stadium, Rudolph wasn’t walking around the visiting locker room so slump-shouldered Sunday and running back James Conner wasn’t limping in the Steelers locker room Monday.

Yet, the doom and gloom that permeated UPMC Rooney Sports Complex in Week 17 last season — when Antonio Brown went AWOL under the same circumstances — isn’t as obvious. The Steelers know they are up against the odds. They not only have to defeat the Ravens but for the Houston Texas to top the Tennessee Titans (8-7).

But the Steelers also believe if they can beat Baltimore and get into the playoffs, anything can happen.

So there’s that.

“On our best day, when we’re all clicking on both sides of the ball, I feel like we can go out and win a playoff game — definitely,” Steelers inside linebacker Mark Barron said. “Nothing’s changed. We’re still approaching these games trying to win every time we step on the field. That’s the mood.”

The best the Steelers can do is to give it a shot, even if their chances of making the playoffs are only so-so.

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