Pirates have rare opportunity to save Pittsburgh's psyche after bizarre Steelers slip

While Pittsburgh fans are familiar with fallow periods, the strangeness and mysticism of a true curse has eluded the city. There isn’t a Steve Bartman or Billy Penn or Pete Muldoon for the city to point to. In fact, Pittsburgh has profited from a few blunders, such as the Bobby Layne trade and the “Curse of the Terrible Towel.” This year, though, one Pittsburgh-area team seems beset by misery, and it’s surprisingly not the Pirates.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter Jason Mackey pointed out that the Steelers have found themselves in a perilous position thanks to a pair of unlucky and unlikely incidents. While the Steelers still lead the AFC North, the team could lose hold of that division (and a playoff spot) with a loss to the rival Ravens on Sunday. If that fate befalls the Steelers, “the punch and the puncture” could be the newest sports curse.

The Pirates may not be the most disappointing and disheartening franchise in Pittsburgh this year.

The Steelers will be without DK Metcalf in Sunday’s regular-season finale because of an altercation he had with a fan during a Week 16 win over the Lions. Metcalf, who alleges that the blue-wigged fan used racial slurs, seemed to throw a punch, which earned him a two-week suspension. In his first week on the bench, Pittsburgh couldn’t get its offense going without the leading receiver and stumbled to a 13-6 loss to the Browns.

On the other side of the football, the Steelers have sorely missed All-Pro linebacker T.J. Watt, who suffered a punctured lung during a dry needling treatment in early December. The freak accident has kept him off the field, but coach Mike Tomlin suggested Watt may return for the win-or-go-home game against Baltimore.

For Pirates fans, it’s refreshing to be reminded that the team’s struggles are the result of a lack of spending by ownership rather than some supernatural curse. Quite frankly, the team that the Pirates have put on the field has been bad. They aren’t bitten by the injury bug or subject to strange twists of fate. Point to Sid Bream or Barry Bonds all you want, but the real blame for the Pirates’ ineptitude can be placed squarely on the organization itself.