Mike Tomlin and the Steelers didn't panic during their December swoon. Now they're in the playoffs

PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers hold a team meeting every Monday afternoon.

In it, longtime head coach Mike Tomlin — in a language that everyone on the roster, from the stars to his assistants to the practice squad guys simply happy to have a job in the NFL can easily understand — outlines his message for the week.

Tomlin's words and his tone can vary depending on the opponent and the circumstances, with one very important caveat: his relentless optimism.

It was there during their somewhat surprising 6-3 start in which they were often outplayed but rarely outscored.

It was there during an awful stretch from mid-November to mid-December that saw them drop four of five games, fire embattled offensive coordinator Matt Canada, and have former players that used to dot Tomlin's locker room — Ben Roethlisberger chief among them — question whether the “Steeler Way” had died.

And it's been there over the past three weeks when third-string quarterback Mason Rudolph revived one of the league's most underachieving offenses, a defense littered with practice squad guys found a way to make it work and Pittsburgh ripped off a series of impressive wins that has it playing in the first round of the postseason in Buffalo on Sunday.

They're not talking about the culture this week. Or wide receiver George Pickens' effort level. Or Tomlin's future.

They're talking about the playoffs. For the 11th time in Tomlin's 17 seasons.

And on Monday, the second-winningest coach in franchise history gathered his team to talk about the task at hand, a task few outside the building thought was possible after the Steelers were drilled in Indianapolis on Dec. 16, a humbling setback that saw Pittsburgh's odds of reaching the postseason all but vanish.

Only they didn't. With Tomlin — who has just coached one regular-season game (out of 275) with the Steelers eliminated from playoff contention — they never do.

“His ability to keep the team focused and motivated is one of the coolest things I've ever been a part of,” center Mason Cole said.

Veteran inside linebacker Myles Jack admitted there was a “red arrow pointing down" before a Week 16 visit from Cincinnati. That was the external perception anyway. It never made its way to the Pittsburgh practice field. Or Tomlin's pathologically single-track mind.

Tomlin vowed the week before the Bengals' game he hadn't lost confidence in himself, pointing to his “51 years of life” but admitted he couldn't necessarily transfer that swagger to his players.

It seems to have gotten there anyway. Eventually. The Steelers averaged 156.7 yards rushing over the final three games, including 155 in a driving rain in Baltimore on Saturday. The defense that's been devastated by injuries at linebacker and safety has forced six turnovers over the same span, tightening up when there was no other choice.

“Everything that comes out of his mouth, you can resonate with and look at yourself like ‘Dang, I could do that a little bit better. Dang, I could really focus on this,'” Jack said. “He's good at keeping people accountable.”

Privately anyway.

The typically guarded Tomlin revealed a little bit of himself the day Canada was fired, saying he wasn't going to give the public the red meat it was looking for and stressing he believes it's his job to absorb as much negativity as possible to protect his players and staff.

They have repaid that respect by doing what Tomlin has done just about as well as anyone not named Bill Belichick or Andy Reid since taking over in 2007: winning.

Pittsburgh will be a heavy underdog in Buffalo. Star outside linebacker T.J. Watt and his NFL-high 19 sacks will watch from the sideline with a sprained left knee.

The Steelers — for all of their regular-season success under Tomlin — haven't won a playoff game since Barack Obama was president.

Still, they're playing next weekend. Eighteen other teams are not. And so it goes for Pittsburgh and a coach with a unique ability to silence the outside noise, no matter how loud it gets.

WHAT'S WORKING

Najee Harris balked last week when asked if he was “fresher” this season than he's typically been in early January thanks to the emergence of backup turned running mate Jaylen Warren.

“I train for this,” Harris said.

Still, Harris — whose 284 touches are a career low — certainly looked fresh while bulling his way to 126 yards against Baltimore to push him over 1,000 yards rushing for the third straight season.

WHAT NEEDS HELP

The pass rush will not be the same with Watt out. Rookie Nick Herbig and veteran Markus Golden will take Watt's place, though the Steelers will likely have to get creative to find ways to disrupt Bills quarterback Josh Allen.

STOCK UP

The “off the couch” guys, Jack and safety Eric Rowe chief among them.

Jack, who was retired when the Steelers reached out the week before Thanksgiving, has 12 tackles and a sack since being activated in Week 16. Rowe, a two-time Super Bowl champ with New England, has 29 tackles and a pick while filling in for a team that's played the past three weeks without its top three safeties.

STOCK DOWN

Safety Damontae Kazee returned to work on Monday after serving a three-game suspension for a series of illegal hits. Kazee acknowledged he needs to rethink how he plays while acknowledging it won't change his mindset once he's on the field.

“Wherever they put me, that's where I'm playing,” he said. “If they put me on special teams, I'm going to be around the ball regardless.”

INJURIES

While Watt is out, the Steelers believe Pro Bowl safety Minkah Fitzpatrick will return after missing three games with a knee injury.

KEY NUMBER

2,555 days — how long it's been (as of this coming Sunday) since the Steelers have won a playoff game, the team's longest drought without a postseason victory since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970.

NEXT STEPS

Snapping that streak and earning a return trip to Baltimore by figuring out how to upset the Bills.