Pittsburgh: Paper Curtain??

When the Cowboys travel to Pittsburgh this Sunday, they will face one of the best teams in the NFL...or so it appears.

Pittsburgh is 9-3 and currently sits in 1st place within AFC North. They have the #1 ranked defense in points allowed, yards allowed and a slew of other statistical categories. They are a great team...or so it appears.

Upon taking a deeper look at the Steeler' situation, you will find these numbers:

• 40-55-1 = Records for teams that Pittsburgh has beaten
• 25-10-1 = Records for teams that Pittsburgh has lost to

Broken down in percentage form:

• The teams that have lost to Pittsburgh have a winning percentage of.........42%
• The teams that have beaten Pittsburgh have a winning percentage of.........71%
• The Dallas Cowboys, as it sits right now, have a winning percentage of..........67%

Pittsburgh is 3-3 against teams with winning records and 6-0 against the Bengals of the world. It's something to think about.

In addition, many pundits have recently highlighted how difficult it will be for Dallas to win in Pittsburgh. Think about it: the "field" is more of a marsh than a football surface, inclement weather will be a factor and the Steelers are used to playing in those types of conditions.

Unfortunately for Mike Tomlin, the stats don't bare that out: two of Pittsburgh's three losses happened at Heinz Field and they needed a 10-point comeback AND overtime to defeat Baltimore at home. Interestingly, Baltimore is the only team with a winning record to have lost at Pittsburgh this year, and they did so in Joe Flacco's third professional game. The two winning teams to recently visit Heinz Field, the Giants and Colts, both left victorious.

While many have detailed the Cowboys' struggles in December and questioned their mental toughness, the Steelers face a question of their own: are they really the "beasts of the AFC" or are they simply paper tigers.