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After the Pittsburgh Steelers' opening week loss to the New England Patriots, the pundits at SB Nation took the team from eighth in their preseason Power Rankings and moved them out of the Top-10 to No. 12. Most fans of the Black-and-Gold took offense to such a drastic fall in the rankings, but following the team's 43-18 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, the Steelers returned to their rightful spot in the Top-10.
After their Week-2 victory, the Steelers are now ranked seventh in SB Nation's latest Power Rankings. So, what did the experts have to say about the Steelers climbing in the rankings heading into their Week-3 game against the St. Louis Rams?
The Pittsburgh Steelers rebounded from a bad loss to the Patriots in Week 1 and demolished a plucky San Francisco 49ers team at home, pushing them back into the top 10. Their offense already looks to be in midseason form at this point and they haven't even gotten Le'Veon Bell or Martavis Bryant back. Things could be looking up for Pittsburgh if it can clean up some issues on defense.
The Steelers being ranked seventh makes them the highest-ranked team in the AFC North, which includes the 2-0 Cincinnati Bengals who are ranked eighth. Other than the Bengals and Steelers, the Baltimore Ravens found themselves 19th within the rankings after getting off to an 0-2 start, and the Cleveland Browns are ranked 27th despite having a 1-1 record.
The Steelers have a tough row to hoe in the coming weeks and months as their schedule certainly doesn't get any easier. After Sunday's game in St. Louis, the team will have a quick turnaround as the Ravens play the Steelers at Heinz Field on Thursday Night Football in Week 4. When Martavis Bryant returns to the team in Week 5, the Steelers will play the San Diego Chargers on Monday Night Football.
Plenty of prime-time games for the Black-and-Gold this year and, if they continue to improve, they could find themselves moving up in the rankings each week.
SB Nation's Top 10:
1. New England Patriots
2. Green Bay Packers
3. Denver Broncos
4. Arizona Cardinals
5. Kansas City Chiefs
6. Dallas Cowboys
7. Pittsburgh Steelers
8. Cincinnati Bengals
9. Buffalo Bills
10. New York Jets