The Steelers' schedule is in for a big gut test, with the Ravens ahead and the Chiefs ahead

PHILADELPHIA – TJ Watt hobbled toward the tunnel leading to the visitors’ locker room at Lincoln Financial Field during the final minutes of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 27-13 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

With three games in 11 days against two more of the NFL’s best teams, both in their own conference, the Steelers could do the same in the postseason.

“Very frustrating, especially this late in the season,” Watt said of the loss, adding that he twisted his ankle and will undergo further tests to determine his status for the team’s next game in six days against Baltimore Ravens to determine.

A win would secure Pittsburgh the AFC North. The Steelers will play the Kansas City Chiefs on Christmas Day 96 hours later, for a total of three games in 11 days. The combined record of these three opponents is 34-8.

“We don’t have a lot of time,” defensive lineman Cam Heyward said. “We must have a memory like a goldfish. I have to move on. That doesn’t mean we don’t have respect for who we just played against, but the clock is ticking.”

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The Eagles held the ball for the final 10 minutes and 29 seconds of the game. Philadelphia converted 10 of 17 third-down attempts (58.8%). Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was upset with the team’s tackling performance.

“We weren’t good enough in some fundamental areas tonight,” he said. “That’s ours, especially as coaches.

“We started slow, but you have to give these guys some credit. The beginning didn’t necessarily worry me too much. Beginnings will not define us. But again, I think for the most part we’re looking at the bigger picture in terms of the fundamental things that have been laid out.”

In the second half, the Steelers had a total of two possessions – culminating in a fumble and a punt – and ran 11 plays. The start of the game was worse. They punted on four of their first five drives, but managed a field goal – a fumble by Eagles rookie Cooper DeJean on a punt return gave the Steelers the ball at the Philadelphia 11-yard line. That came after the Steelers had already wasted a perfect punchout from Watt on Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts that gave them possession in plus territory.

“We knew they had the ability to run it and pass it,” Watt said after Hurts threw for 290 yards and AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith each had more than 100 yards and a touchdown for Philadelphia.

Before its early field goal, Pittsburgh had the ball at the 1-yard line before a challenge resulted in two personal fouls being awarded to the Steelers, much to Tomlin’s dismay. The team’s first first down came more than 20 minutes into the game. The Eagles finished the game with 26 first downs; Pittsburgh had 10.

“They played a lot better than us tonight. “The way we played is unacceptable,” Wilson said. “I think we feel like we need to be sharper. So we just have to stay on track. And know that, of course, we have a big week ahead of us. We have to react. We have to get ready to go.”

The Steelers are 6-2 since Wilson took over the starting role from Justin Fields, who left Sunday with an abdominal injury after his only appearance of the game – which resulted in a dubious unnecessary roughness penalty.

Pittsburgh averaged 3.3 yards on the ground against Philadelphia’s front. The team has scored at least 26 points in all but one of its wins (an 18-16 home victory over the Ravens on November 17). But Wilson (14 of 22 for 128 passing yards) had 30 fewer passing yards against the Eagles than he did last week in the 27-14 win over the Browns (158), and he has a 60.4% completion rate in both games .

This coincides with the absence of wide receiver George Pickens, the team’s top target, who is sidelined with a hamstring injury.

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The Steelers’ schedule is in for a big gut test, with the Ravens ahead and the Chiefs ahead

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