Steelers fan confidence continues its season-long roller coaster after prime time loss

The Pittsburgh Steelers fan can be a fickle bunch. Every season is Super Bowl or bust for the fan base, and despite a huge Week 1 win over the Buffalo Bills, the three game skid which ensued had Steelers fans in a downward spiral.

However, the Week 5 win over the Denver Broncos combined with the Week 6 overtime win vs. the Seattle Seahawks had the fan base starting to believe again. Before you knew it, the Steelers had clawed their way back to .500, and moved the team’s record to 3-3 on the season. On top of that, it gave the fans a taste of victory which had avoided them for almost an entire month. Coming off the bye week, the Steelers went on the road and beat the Cleveland Browns in Week 8, and now fans are really believing again.

Nonetheless, the come from behind Week 9 win over the Chicago Bears on Monday night football has fans questioning the team again. To make matters worse, a 16-16 tie vs. the Detroit Lions in Week 10 has the fans downright disgusted in the team, and its direction. How did the team follow up the tie? With a prime time loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, but somehow, someway the fan base’s confidence is actually on the rise after the loss.

The Steelers fan confidence in their favorite team was on the uptick, and likely due to the crazy finish in Week 11 which saw the Steelers score 27 points in the 4th quarter. But, for those who don’t like the direction the team is headed, following the Bengals slapping the Steelers around to the tune of a 41-10 loss, the confidence is on a sharp downturn. In typical Steelers fashion, the team followed up the horrible loss to the Bengals with a rousing victory over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 13.

What has been the lone consistent aspect of the 2021 season has been how inconsistent the Steelers have been. How did they follow up that 20-19 win over the Ravens? With a 36-28 smackdown to the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday Night Football.

How were the fans feeling about the team moving forward? Well, you can probably guess the roller coaster ride the fans have been on since the season began.

Here at SB Nation we poll fans every week in our SB Nation “Reacts” polls, and one of the questions asked is whether you have confidence in your team moving forward. As you can see, the confidence of the fan base has plummeted, again, after Week 14.

If you want to know just how the fan confidence has changed, you can see the percentages below:

Post NFL Draft: 75%
Week 1: 89%
Week 2: 79%
Week 3: 38%
Week 4: 13%
Week 5: 18%
Week 6: 36%
Week 7: 54%
Week 8: 57%
Week 9: 71%
Week 10: 65%
Week 11: 28%
Week 12: 43%
Week 13: 20%
Week 14: 56%
Week 15: 31%

The Steelers had the look of a team who had turned the corner in Week 13, but the dud in Week 14 has fans questioning the team’s future. Now the key is for the Steelers to return to winning football, and to keep their playoff hopes alive. A decisive win could be just what the fan base needs to truly believe this team has the potential to turn the corner.

Will the team continue their winning ways, or will any success the team experiences be nothing more than a flash in the pan? Only time will tell...

Be sure to stay tuned to BTSC for the latest news and notes surrounding the black and gold as they prepare for the Tennessee Titans at Heinz Field Sunday.

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