Loss Is a Troubling Sign for Steelers

The Steelers have had a great decade. Two Super Bowl titles, two more AFC Championship appearances and six playoff berths is a record most teams would love to have.

But there have been some bad losses along the way as well, few worse than the loss to the Chiefs on Sunday. Here's a look at the worst five losses of the decade.

No. 1: 2002 Week 14: Houston 24, Pittsburgh 6.

There have been plenty of great wins and a fair number of bad losses for the Steelers this decade, but none was more disheartening for Steelers fans then this inexplicable 18-point loss to the expansion Texans. Pittsburgh's zone blitz schemes left David Carr completely baffled (3-for-10, 10 net yards) and held the Texans to 40 total yards,

But thanks to a fumble return for a touchdown and two interception return for touchdowns, Pittsburgh still lost by three scores. Tommy Maddox threw for more than 300 yards for Pittsburgh, but the Steelers fell apart whenever they got close to Houston's red zone.

No. 2: 2006 Week 8: Oakland 20, Pittsburgh 13.

If you're looking for a game that is the closest thing to a carbon copy of the Steelers loss to the Chiefs, this 2006 disaster fits. The Steelers were a defending Super Bowl champion. Oakland was 1-5, on its way to finishing an awful 2-14. But despite holding Oakland to less than 100 yards of total offense while piling up 360 yards themselves, Pittsburgh lost thanks to a pair of interception returns for touchdowns.

A couple of years ago Football Outsiders did a study trying to determine what are the characteristics of good/great teams. And what they found was, even more than beating good teams, the most common thread was how good/great teams blow out bad teams. The Steelers may have been Super Bowl champs in 2005, but the loss to the Raiders made it clear that the 2006 Steelers weren't great--they weren't even good.

No. 3: 2009 Week 11: Kansas City 27, Pittsburgh 24 (OT).

This one is still fresh enough for everyone to remember.

No. 4: 2006 Week 2: Jacksonville 9, Pittsburgh 0.

The 2006 season is one best forgotten by Steelers fans. Pittsburgh suffered through a post-Super Bowl hangover that was made even more enjoyable by a year of speculation over whether Bill Cowher would retire at the end of the season. But the lasting memory of 2006 was of Steelers offensive line getting blown off the ball. The problems first cropped up in a prime-time loss to the Jaguars. Pittsburgh ran the ball 14 times for 26 yards, most of which consisted of Willie Parker trying to dodge defensive linemen in the backfield.

No. 5: 2008 Week 3: Philadelphia 15, Pittsburgh 6.

Yes, the Eagles were a very good team, but the Steelers have rarely been dominated like this, at least on one side of the ball. This was the game that illustrated all of the Steelers pass protection problems. Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson stacked the line with seven or eight defenders, pressuring the "A" gaps between center Justin Hartwig and both guards. The Steelers never figured out who was blitzing and who was dropping into coverage. Philadelphia sacked Ben Roethlisberger nine times. While it may have been only a nine-point win for the Eagles, the Steelers could have played for 120 minutes without scoring 15 points.

As bad as this game was, it is a sign of hope. Pittsburgh worked to eliminate the communication problems on the offensive line that caused the disaster, and that paid off with a Super Bowl win at the end of the season.