Compared to baseball, hockey and basketball, the NFL schedule may seem like a sprint, but it is much more than that.

Just six weeks into the season, teams have already experienced the twists and turns that accompany pro football each and every campaign.

The Chiefs were riding high after a 4-0 start, but are now licking their wounds after losing two straight home games and quarterback Patrick Mahomes is now suspected to be human, hobbling around with an injured ankle.

Dallas got off to a 3-0 start but hasn't won since and now sports a 3-3 record after dropping Sunday's game to the previously winless Jets.

After three games, Minnesota quarterback Kirk Cousins was catching flack from his wide receivers, Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. Over the past two weeks, Cousins has passed for 639 yards and six touchdowns and life is good in Viking Country — for now.

Only 12 of the 32 teams will qualify for the playoffs and every one has to deal with some sort of adversity — some more than others.

As for the Steelers, many fans considered their season over after losing to San Francisco last month. Then after a home loss to Baltimore, those same people said, “Okay, now they're really done.”

The Steelers (2-4) still have a chance to salvage something this year — a .500 record and possibly a playoff berth. One reason for this is their division. No team, including the leading Baltimore Ravens (4-2), is dominant.

Another plus for Pittsburgh is its defense. In recent years, the unit has been criticized for the low number of sacks and turnovers it generated. That is not the case this year as the Steelers are ranked third in the NFL in both sacks (20) and turnovers (15).

Pittsburgh must find a way to keep up this impressive pace defensively since quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is sidelined for the season.

The recent loss to the Ravens at Heinz Field really hurts. If the Steelers are to make the postseason, they most likely will have to win in Baltimore in late December, something even Roethlisberger has struggled to do. How will Mason Rudolph or Devlin Hodges handle a road game against the Ravens?

Pittsburgh and Cleveland (2-4) are in the same boat and it extends beyond their identical records. Both teams have struggled to win close games. The Browns won two games comfortably, but have lost two games at home to the Rams and Seahawks by a combined 11 points.

Turnovers have plagued the Steelers. Fumbles late against the 49ers and Ravens led to 24-20 and 26-23 defeats, respectively. They also dropped a 28-26 decision to Seattle.

The Steelers and Browns meet twice in the span of 17 days in November and December and the outcomes could very well determine if either team is in position to challenge Baltimore down the stretch.

Derek Pyda is a staff writer for the Butler Eagle