A certain word is already being thrown around and it’s not one that I’m a fan of: “trap game”.

Steelers fans tend to get antsy about road games. They tend to get even more anxious when their favorite team travels to play a subpar team; that is, one that has a losing record. There’s a narrative out there that Mike Tomlin led Steelers teams struggle on the road against bad teams.

This year’s Chicago Bears are a bad team, and one might think that the very definition of a trap game is looking ahead to the following week’s opponent, which happens to be their 2-0 division rival, the Baltimore Ravens.

So the question becomes, do we believe that the Steelers play down to bad teams? Do we believe that trap games exist? And if we subscribe to either train of thought, is this weekend’s trip to Chicago a “trap game”?

Get ready for my flaming hot take, because I’m going to say no to all of the above. Here’s why.

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Defining “bad” teams

The situations the Steelers have been in over the last five years don’t exactly dictate playing “down” to “bad” teams as some may like us to believe. After running the stats and researching losses to “lesser” opponents, you can see that this usually isn’t the case.

Year	Team	Going In	Opp W/L	PIT W/L	Notes
2016	Ravens	3-4	8-8	11-5	Ben back from injury
2016	Dolphins	1-4	10-6	11-5
2015	Chiefs	1-5	11-5	10-6	QB: Landry Jones
2015	Ravens	0-3	5-11	10-6	QB: Michael Vick
2014	Jets	1-8	4-12	11-5
2013	Bengals	0-1	11-5	8-8
2013	Vikings	0-3	5-10-1	8-8	London Game
2013	Raiders	2-4	4-12	8-8
2013	Ravens	5-6	8-8	8-8
2012	Raiders	0-2	4-12	8-8
2012	Titans	1-4	6-10	8-8
2012	Browns	2-8	5-11	8-8	QB: Charlie Batch

The last time the Steelers lost on the road to a “bad” team was against the very team they could be looking ahead to this season. The Ravens were the beneficiary of a banged-up Ben Roethlisberger who just returned from a knee injury after a little over two weeks of rest, following reports that he would be out as many as six weeks to heal.

In Steelers speak, that’s an excuse, and I agree. But it doesn’t change the fact that the Ravens, as well as any division opponent, play Pittsburgh tough. Baltimore historically has the upper hand at home as well, and as we came to find out, their rematch on Christmas Day decided who won the AFC North.

So would you consider a road loss to then 3-4 Baltimore as losing to a “lesser” opponent?

I do not.

Another game which really sticks in the craw of many is the road loss to the Miami Dolphins last season. This was the game we all called a “trap” last year, and it turned out to be an ugly showing for the Steelers. The Dolphins were 1-4 going into the game but were in the middle of a four-game home stretch where they finally got several of their starting offensive linemen ready, while also kicking Arian Foster to the curb in favor of running back Jay Ajayi.

We all know the rest, as Ajayi had his coming out party and had a great season, as Miami finished 10-6 and made the playoffs.

Were they necessarily a bad team?

Saying “yes” means you’d have to call the Steelers, who fell to 4-5 at one point last year, a bad team as well. In other words, the Dolphins weren’t so much a bad team as one who lost a few games due to a variety of factors.

That’s my exact reasoning for any game played during the 2012 and 2013 seasons, where the Steelers finished 8-8. No one would admit it, but they were in a rebuilding mode on top of losing key players to injuries throughout both seasons. Our fans tend to favor our boys in the black and gold, but sometimes you have to call a spade a spade. Those Steelers teams weren’t that strong, especially the 2013 team which started the season 0-4.

Swing around to losses in subsequent seasons, and only the awful Jets showing against Michael Vick stands out as a goose egg. You’re going to have those. There is this little thing called having an “off day”. There’s also a theory that parity exists in the NFL. Don’t forget the other teams get paid to play football too!

The irony with the Jets game is that Vick would be under center for an overtime loss to a Ravens team which entered Heinz Field 0-3 for a Thursday Night Football game. The loss was painful but not nearly as painful as it was to watch the game without Big Ben playing.

Ditto for Landry Jones filling in a couple of weeks later on the road at Arrowhead Stadium.

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Should we brace ourselves for disappointment then?

I can’t say yes or no. What I can say is that this game isn’t a trap. I don’t think the Steelers are looking past the Bears, even if this year’s Chicago team looks like a dumpster fire. The Steelers are well aware of the “playing down” mantra and I truly believe that no team in the league looks past their current opponent.

We’re also witnessing a Steelers team which is still young and growing. They’re aware that they must improve on both sides of the ball. This could be the game they feel they MUST dominate in order to get that ball rolling up the proverbial “Stairway to Seven”.

The only thing I feel could get in the way of that thinking is Baltimore traveling to London to play Jacksonville for a 9:30 AM ET kickoff. That means we’ll know the outcome of the Ravens game before the Steelers/Bears kickoff at 1:00 PM ET. Should the Ravens lose, I think the Steelers might feel more relaxed about phoning in a win. If the Ravens win, they may feel more motivated about entering M&T Bank Stadium next week with a matching record.

Regardless, I still feel the idea of a trap game and playing down to opponents is nonsense. These are professional athletes who prepare the same way each week no matter the opponent. It may be easier to get psychologically up for some opponents as opposed to others, but as far as execution on the field, you either have it or you don’t. The opponent’s record is inconsequential in determining the outcome of that game.