The Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Kansas City Chiefs is being called a Top 5 game on the 2017 NFL regular season schedule.
Elliot Harrison has a look at the 17 most interesting games on the upcoming 2017 regular season schedule and one of the top-rated ones will be a rematch from last year’s playoff loss for the Kansas City Chiefs as they, once again, face the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Chiefs are still feeling the sting of January’s defeat, a game they lost despite scoring the game’s only touchdowns and keeping the vaunted trio of Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell out of the end zone completely. It was a bitter end to a magical season that included the biggest comeback in franchise history (Week 1), the doink, and a complete sweep of the AFC West to claim the first divisional title in Andy Reid’s tenure with the team.
Now the Chiefs have a chance to erase the memory of that last with another game against the Steelers. Harrison writes:
"Easily the most intriguing of the AFC postseason rematches. While Patriots at Steelers sounds sexy, the reality is that the AFC Championship Game stunk, as did the regular-season matchup — partially because the Steelers have been partial. (Availability is the most important ability, football fans.) Meanwhile, Pittsburgh and Kansas City locked up in an old-school, ’70s-style matchup that came down to the wire (and an Eric Fisher stranglehold of Ted Nugent proportions). Chiefs fans thought they were robbed. The Steelers advanced. These two teams present a fascinating contrast in approach — from coaching styles to offenses to the strengths of their defenses. Great uni matchup, too, while we’re at it."
The Steelers are just one of several playoff teams the Chiefs will face this next season in a loaded schedule that won’t let up. Not only do the Chiefs play in the most difficult division in football with the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos twice each season, but they are likely to open the season against the defending Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots.