PITTSBURGH (AP) — Russell Wilson and the Pittsburgh Steelers don’t want to talk about the past with the playoff approaching.
The Steelers finished the regular season on a four-game losing streak after a fourth-quarter rally fell short, as Cincinnati kept its playoff hopes alive with a 19-17 victory Saturday night.
“I think the best thing we can do is get ready for the playoffs,” Wilson said. “It’s a new season. That’s the only thing that really matters anymore at this point.”
Pittsburgh locked up a playoff berth weeks ago. The Steelers are the third team in NFL history to enter the playoffs on a four-game skid.
“We need to play winning football and we’re not doing that right now,” linebacker T.J. Watt said. “We need to wipe the slate clean. We’re in the tournament now and we need to play better football.”
The Steelers lost their grip on the AFC North and now need the Las Vegas Raiders to beat the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday to avoid a trip to face rival Baltimore, the AFC North champion, in the opening round of the playoffs. If the Chargers lose, Pittsburgh will travel to Houston in the first round.
“Obviously, us winning would’ve helped us in some form or fashion,” Wilson said. “But at the end of the day, when you go into the playoffs, everybody’s 0-0 and you have to beat everybody anyway. It has been a tough few weeks. That has to be our focus right now.”
Pittsburgh’s defense took a significant step back in December and gave up more than 400 yards a game during the first three losses in the streak. On Saturday, Burrow and the Bengals put up 314 yards of total offense.
Pittsburgh finished with 193 yards, many in the fourth quarter with the offense desperately trying to rally. Wilson completed just one pass in the third quarter as Cincinnati dominated time of possession by 16 minutes. He finished 17 of 31 for 148 yards with a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Pat Freiermuth.
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Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin speaks during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. The Bengals won 19-17. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson speaks during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. The Bengals won 19-17. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson speaks during a news conference after an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. The Bengals won 19-17. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson (3) throws a pass as Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson (91) moves in during the first half of an NFL football game in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)
HONOLULU (AP) — A 3-year-old boy who died Monday was the fourth person to succumb to injuries from a massive explosion of fireworks on New Year's Eve at a Honolulu home, and a doctor said six others faced long recoveries in Arizona, where they were sent to be treated for severe burns.
The blast also killed three women and injured more than 20 people, many of whom have burns over most of their bodies.
The Honolulu medical examiner identified the toddler as Cassius Ramos-Benigno. The cause and manner of death were listed as pending.
The U.S. military flew six of the injured to Phoenix for treatment on Saturday because Hawaii’s lone burn center doesn’t have enough capacity to care for all the victims.
After the disaster, Hawaii's leaders intensified their oft-repeated calls to crack down on the state's vast illegal fireworks trade with stepped-up enforcement and greater penalties.
The six taken to Arizona are all in their 20s or 30s and have extensive burns, Dr. Kevin Foster, the director of the Arizona Burn Center, said at a news conference streamed online.
The person with the least has burns over 45% of their body while the most has burns over nearly 80% of their body. Each of the six is using a breathing tube and most are in medically induced comas.
Foster said they are all doing “very well” and have good vital signs. But it will be six months to a year before any are able to return to anything resembling a normal life, Foster said. Four patients will likely have to remain intubated and in a coma for months, he said.
The patients will likely suffer post-traumatic stress disorder, Foster said, adding the burn center has two full-time psychologists and a psychiatrist hospital on staff to help them.
“There’s something uniquely and particularly horrifying about being burned, especially from this type of injury,” Foster said. “And we anticipate that all of these patients are going to have some adjustment issues.”
Many required emergency surgery before leaving Hawaii and a number had traumatic injuries in addition to burns, because of the explosions and resulting projectiles, he said.
The Arizona Burn Center operated on all six on Sunday, performed three other surgeries Monday and plan three others Tuesday. By then, doctors should be done with removing burns and will progress to closing wounds and grafting skin, Foster said. Infections are the most dangerous and feared complication for burn patients, he said, while also predicting all would likely get them at some point.
“It’s just the way burn injury works, especially when you have large percent-of-total-body-surface-area burns like this,” Foster said.
The scars, and the physical limitations that come with them, will likely be the biggest thing that the patients have to deal with and are what will make these wounds lifelong injuries, he said.
Foundations affiliated with the burn center and the hospital it is a part of, Valleywise Health, are providing housing for patient relatives. Some burn center employees have even volunteered their homes, Foster said.
Hawaii’s diverse population has long celebrated New Year’s with fireworks, but in recent years, professional-grade aerial explosives have been growing in popularity even though they are illegal for amateurs. Neighborhoods across Oahu light up for hours as residents launch aerial fireworks into the sky from the narrow streets in front of their homes.
Honolulu authorities say a person attending a party lit a bundle of aerial fireworks, which fell on its side and shot explosives into two crates that contained additional aerials. Video of the resulting explosion shows a rapid series of blasts shooting fireworks in the air and around the front of a house.
Hawaii’s counties have varying rules on other types of fireworks. On Oahu, the state’s most populous island, only certain types of firecrackers are allowed to be used during specific timeframes on New Year’s Eve, Chinese New Year and Fourth of July. However, many residents set off fireworks of all kinds year-round.
Associated Press writer Jennifer Sinco Kelleher contributed to this report.
People walk past the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
A woman sweeps debris from a driveway across the street from the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
Evelyn Paguirigan points to broken windows at her home across the street from where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people in Honolulu, on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
A woman walks in front of the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
A view of the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
A woman stands in front of the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
A damaged vehicle is seen near the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
Fireworks debris is seen outside the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
A view of the home where a New Year's Eve fireworks explosion killed and injured people, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia)
