If you ask all your football-loving friends and family members to make a short list of Super Bowl LI contenders, few of those lists will include the Pittsburgh Steelers, unless you live in or near Allegheny County.
That, however, is probably about to change.
On the surface, the Steelers don't appear to be a major threat to AFC powerhouses like the 10-2 Oakland Raiders, the 10-2 New England Patriots or the 9-3 Kansas City Chiefs. After all, Pittsburgh is just 7-5 and is still technically out of the playoff picture.