PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ramon Foster never stopped believing. Not after the embarrassing meltdown against Tampa Bay. Not after the debacle in Cleveland. Not after the New York Jets pushed the Pittsburgh Steelers around six weeks ago.
The Steelers were a playoff team. Foster was sure of it. The self-assured guard figured it would simply take a little time for things to come together, particularly on a roster that's undergone a sizable makeover since its last postseason appearance in 2011.
"I've said it since the beginning of camp, we have the tools capable of doing it," Foster said. "It starts up front with the O-line and D-line. We have a quarterback. We have a running back. We have receivers. We have a defense that is getting hot."
So hot that Foster sees no problem with taking the feeling he had since camp opened in July a step further.
"A lot of press look at me weird when I say it, but I think we're a team that's capable of playing in Arizona," Foster said.
That's Arizona as in the host of the Super Bowl.
Foster wasn't bragging or making a prediction, necessarily, but giving voice to a confidence that has slowly been building throughout the fall. Pittsburgh's momentum crested in Sunday's 20-12 win over Kansas City that secured a playoff spot and set up a showdown with Cincinnati this weekend for the AFC North title and the home playoff game that goes along with it.
While quarterback Ben Roethlisberger stresses the Steelers (10-5) remain a work in progress, they also look less uneven than the group that slouched through a 3-3 start. Pittsburgh is 7-2 since getting crushed by the Browns on Oct. 12. Roethlisberger is in the midst of the finest season of his career. Antonio Brown is obliterating every significant team single-season receiving record and Le'Veon Bell is entering the conversation as the most versatile running back in the league.
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