Surely, it had to be a coincidence. The Steelers cutting David Johnson, Fitzgerald Toussaint and Cobi Hamilton Saturday simply was a matter of them getting beat out by better competition. But it's hard for anyone who knows Steelers history not to notice the purging of previous playoff goats.
It was Johnson who infamously missed his block early in the fourth quarter of Super Bowl XLV that led to a Rashard Mendenhall fumble. The Steelers were driving for the go-ahead score, and it ended up being the turning point in the eventual 31-25 loss.
It was Toussaint who infamously fumbled in the fourth quarter of a 2015 AFC divisional round game in Denver. The Steelers were winning and driving for another score that could have sent the Steelers to the AFC title game. Instead, it opened the door for the Broncos to win and a few weeks later hoist the Lombardi Trophy.
And it was Hamilton who infamously dropped a touchdown pass in the second quarter of the AFC championship game in January. It was a costly drop at a time when the game was still very much within reach.
Of course, Kevin Colbert and Mike Tomlin didn't plan it that way. But the notable roster cuts do serve as a neat segue as the Steelers get set to embark on a journey they hope ends with their first Super Bowl victory in nine years.
The moves Colbert and Tomlin made in the days leading up to Saturday will have much more impact on any potential run to the Super Bowl. The decisions to bring in cornerback Joe Haden and tight end Vance McDonald during the final week of training camp are signs the Steelers are all-in this season.
Colbert and Tomlin were not willing to wait to see if Jesse James and Xavier Grimble were going to step up their games so they traded for McDonald, whom they have liked since he entered the league in 2013. Faced with a similar scenario last year, when it was clear the Steelers were going to be without Ladarius Green for at least half the season, they stood pat.
They also were not willing to see if Ross Cockrell or Coty Sensabaugh could be answers to their longstanding issues in the defensive backfield. Ever since Patriots quarterback Tom Brady carved up their secondary in the AFC championship game, the Steelers have been intent on changing not only their personnel but their coverage schemes. The addition of Haden demonstrated they weren't willing to have a wait-and-see attitude on two players that might have been able to make the transition to more man coverage. They added a player with a proven track record instead.
The 2017 season isn't about potential; it's about postseason results. The Steelers have taken incremental steps in the playoffs the past three seasons. They advanced to the wild-card round in 2014, the divisional round in 2015 and the AFC championship game in 2016.
It's Super Bowl or bust with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger not committed beyond this season.
The Steelers have more talent and depth on offense than at any time during Roethlisberger's career. All-Pro receiver Antonio Brown and running back Le'Veon Bell are arguably the two best players at their positions in the league.
Martavis Bryant is one of the league's top deep threats and rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster has all the makings of a valuable possession target once he gets acclimated.
There are two players with All-Pro honors on their resume protecting Roethlisberger in David DeCastro and Maurkice Pouncey and three others in Ramon Foster, Marcus Gilbert and Alejandro Villanueva who have years of experience working together.
The defense is young and talented with the most pressing concerns being in the revamped secondary. There are seven defensive starters 25 or younger, including six first-round draft picks, four of whom were selected in each of the past four years. They are the cornerstone to a defense the Steelers believe can blossom this season.
How it all unfolds from here will be the story of the season. There will be setbacks, injuries, adversity, and very likely another postseason date with their top adversary _ the New England Patriots.
The journey to Super Bowl LII begins six days from now in Cleveland, and there is only one ending the Steelers have in mind.
