Game result: The Steelers pulled away after a slow first half and won with ease 28-15. They improved to 8-6 with the victory and sit a game up on the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North. Pittsburgh travels to face the Detroit Lions in Week 16. The Dolphins dropped to 6-8 and are officially eliminated from playoff contention.
NFL playoff picture: What Steelers win over Dolphins mean for AFC standings in Week 15
The Dolphins face the Steelers in Pittsburgh on Monday to close out Week 15. We break down what the game means for the NFL playoff picture.
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The Miami Dolphins and Pittsburgh Steelers face off in Pittsburgh on Monday Night Football to close out Week 15. The Dolphins are 6-7 while the Steelers are 7-6, and both remain in the playoff picture for the time-being. The Pittsburgh is a field goal favorite heading into the game.
The Dolphins have won four straight games and five of their past six to climb to 6-7 and resurrect playoff hopes that appeared to be dead. In their past five games, they lost to the Ravens, but have wins over the Falcons, Bills, Commanders, Saints, and Jets. The Steelers are coming off a huge road win over the Ravens last week, but have struggled since a three-game winning streak in September and October.
Miami Dolphins playoff picture
The Dolphins have a clear need in Monday’s game. If they lose, they are eliminated from the playoff picture. If they win, they would move into a tie with the Ravens. Baltimore would hold the tiebreaker from the head-to-head matchup, but both teams would be two games back of the Texans for the final wild card berth. They do have the Colts sitting between them, and Indy beat the Dolphins, so Miami needs a lot of help the rest of the way.
Pittsburgh Steelers playoff picture
The Steelers are a half game up on the Ravens in the AFC North. A win moves them a full game up on Baltimore, but even if they lose, they’d remain the first place team in the division due to their win over Baltimore last week. The Steelers and Ravens face off in Week 18, and it’s a decent bet the division title comes down to that game.
Regardless of Monday’s outcome, the Steelers will remain in fourth place in the conference standings. A win would keep them two games back of the Jaguars for third place overall, while a loss would drop them to three games back in the conference with three games remaining.
Tiebreaker implications
This game could have an impact on the common games tiebreaker between the Steelers and Ravens, as both will have faced the Dolphins. With one game remaining between Pittsburgh and Baltimore, a Week 18 Ravens win could set it up so that the head-to-head tiebreaker is split, the divisional tiebreaker is tied, and it then moves to record in common games.
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