Mark Madden: Game with undefeated Titans starts telling stretch for Steelers

The NFL has three undefeated teams left. Two of them play Sunday in Nashville.

Yet the hype for Steelers-Titans has been restrained. An explosion thereof doesn’t seem imminent. Not like when Mr. Used-to-Be took on Mr. Hasn’t-Won-Enough this past Sunday, sparking constant delirium on WokeCenter and other like programs.

Mr. Used-to-Be went present tense. Mr. Hasn’t-Won-Enough didn’t. Jake from State Farm bet the under.

Ben Roethlisberger vs. Ryan Tannehill isn’t quite so sexy a battle. But both quarterbacks are having terrific seasons.

Derrick Henry vs. everybody in black and gold is a bruising matchup. Mike Tomlin better be ready to trip Henry coming down the sideline. It might come to that.

But the NFL and the networks don’t think Steelers-Titans is a big game. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. Sunday. It’s not prime time. It’s not even 4 p.m. It’s just another game.

The Steelers’ nationwide popularity quite often merits better. But they have missed the playoffs two straight years, and only one of their five wins this season has much credibility.

Perhaps Tennessee is just the covid team now. Can you catch the virus via watching TV?

But it’s nonetheless 5-0 vs. 5-0. Kansas City and Baltimore have lost. These teams haven’t. The winner shoehorns entrée into the AFC’s upper crust with the Chiefs and Ravens, however temporarily. The Steelers visit Baltimore the very next Sunday for a (sigh) 1 p.m. kickoff.

It’s a telling game for the Steelers, and the beginning of a telling stretch.

It’s nearly impossible to imagine the Steelers losing at Dallas Nov. 8, not with Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott sidelined and after how terrible Dallas looked dropping a 38-10 decision to visiting Arizona on Monday. Andy Dalton has rarely been a problem for the Steelers.

If the Steelers win two of the next three, they’re 7-1 and have a legit shot at the AFC North championship and the conference’s No. 1 seed in the playoffs, especially if they win at Baltimore. Winning one of three leaves them 6-2 and a good bet for the AFC’s top wild card, which very likely means they don’t play Kansas City or Baltimore in the wild-card round.

The Steelers’ foes to date have been subpar, but that doesn’t make the victories count any less.

Buzz for the game at Nashville hasn’t yet percolated, but buzz for the Steelers is starting to grow. Bleacher Report has the Steelers’ at No. 1 in their weekly power rankings. If Pittsburgh hasn’t paid much attention to Bleacher Report, it might now.

Not that local hype needs a boost. The yinzplosion started at 2-0 and has grown more unreasonable with each W.

KDKA-TV’s Bob Pompeani has the Steelers No. 2 behind Seattle in his power rankings. He is a traitor to the cheerleading nature of local news. Pompeani should be dead to Pittsburgh.

If the Steelers lose at Nashville, the marks have an excuse: “The game should have been played Week 4! Should have been a forfeit!” If the Steelers lose at Baltimore, same thing: “Should have had a bye last week! The Ravens had a bye! That’s a big edge!”

So the Steelers’ fan base has been set up nicely in that regard. Excuses are for losers, and that’s meant in a good way.

As of Sunday, the big kids start arriving at the playground. We finally find out what the Steelers really have.

It’s going to be a hard-fought, throwback-type game, but the Steelers will lose.

It’s the first good team the Steelers have played, so there might be culture shock. Tennessee wiped out AFC East leader Buffalo by 26 after getting off the covid schneid.

The Steelers’ speed and aggression on defense could be exploited by Tannehill’s penchant for play-action. Henry’s size and style will take a toll. It’s inevitable. If the game is tight after three quarters, the result of the day’s physicality will swing the game in the Titans’ favor.

Tennessee will likely game plan to exploit Steelers inside ‘backer Robert Spillane. Spillane did OK vs. Cleveland after Devin Bush got hurt, so we’ve convinced ourselves that Spillane can do the job. He can’t. Spillane is an undrafted third-year pro from the MAC. He’s OK defending the run (maybe a bit undersized to even do that) but unproven in coverage. He’s a stop-gap.

The Steelers should look to acquire better. Henry will look to run right at Spillane.

So, the Steelers lose. No biggie. They will be 5-1 heading into a showdown at Baltimore. Speaking for the local sports-talk industry, a Steelers loss at Nashville would be #BestForBusiness.