PITTSBURGH — How about a horrifying thought?
What if the Steelers have a terrific season and get bounced out of the playoffs quickly? What if they go, say, 13-3 and lose their first postseason game?
What's that you say?
It's happened before?
You're absolutely right. The Jacksonville Jaguars after the 2017 season. That 45-42 home loss remains, arguably, the worst loss of the Mike Tomlin era.
Well, I have another troubling thought for you.
What if Le'Veon Bell or Antonio Brown does what each couldn't do with the Steelers? What if one plays on the Super Bowl-winning team this season? Even worse, how about if their teams meet in Super Bowl LV in Tampa in February?
It easily could happen.
Bell played his first game Sunday with the Kansas City Chiefs, the defending champs. Are you willing to bet against Patrick Mahomes winning again? He has a chance to be the greatest quarterback of all time even if he doesn't match Tom Brady's six Super Bowl wins. He is that spectacular.
Speaking of Brady ...
Brown, after serving his eight-game suspension for conduct detrimental to the NFL, will play his first game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Nov. 8 when they play division rival New Orleans. It's not much of a reach to predict the Bucs will make it to the Super Bowl because of how well Brady is playing at 43. He threw three touchdown passes and three interceptions as the team started 1-1. He threw for 15 touchdowns with just one interception in the past five games as the team went 4-1.
A seventh Super Bowl title for Brady is an intriguing thought.
Brown has a chance to help Brady get it done. The two played together in one game early last season with the New England Patriots and had a nice chemistry. Brown had four catches for 56 yards and a touchdown in a 43-0 win against the Miami Dolphins, then was released after sexual-assault allegations against him. He hasn't played since.
In many ways, it's hard to believe Brown is back in the NFL. He was a narcissistic creep who cared more about his stats than he did about wins late in his career with the Steelers. He didn't just quit on them, he quit on the Oakland Raiders before his brief time with the Patriots. He also has that ugly alleged history of being abusive to women.
But in one big way, it's easy to understand why Brown is back. He has extraordinary talent. That tends to trump all in sports. He was the best wide receiver in Steelers history.
Brady lobbied to bring Brown with him to Tampa during the offseason, but the idea was shot down by Bucs coach Bruce Arians, who was offensive coordinator with the Steelers during Brown's first two seasons with the team. Arians called Brown "a diva" last year and said he wouldn't be a fit in the Bucs locker room. Brown responded on social media by ridiculing Arians' appearance.
A marriage made in heaven, right?
But Arians isn't the first coach to sell his soul to the devil in order to win. He said he changed his mind about Brown because the Bucs, at 5-2, are in first place in the NFC South despite a run of injuries at wide receiver and believes this can be a special season. Arians also said Brown has "matured" and knows he'll quickly be released if he doesn't fit in as a team player.
To Brown's credit, he has been remarkably quiet on social media for a long time. Someone finally must have convinced him he was sabotaging his chance of getting back in the NFL with his obnoxious, often heavy-handed tweets and posts. But we'll see how long Brown remains happy. Spotrac reported Tuesday that he will make $111,000 per game and will need to average seven catches for 82 yards and nearly a touchdown a game to make an additional $750,000. That makes for a lot of pressure on Brady to keep Brown from pouting if the ball doesn't come his way enough.
Bell is a much better bet than Brown to get to and win the Super Bowl.
Bell gained 16 yards on his first carry for the Chiefs in their 43-16 win against the Denver Broncos and finished with 39 yards on six carries. Chiefs coach Andy Reid, an offensive genius, figures to get him more involved — especially in the passing game — as he learns the offense. Bell, who was a bust in his season-and-change with the New York Jets, is thankful for the opportunity to be with a great team and appears content to play in the shadow of rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, a budding star.
Did I mention Bell is playing with Mahomes?
I definitely can see the confetti falling on Bell's head from the Tampa night sky.
