Here are five quick-hit thoughts on the Raiders’ shocking 27-24 upset of the Steelers in Week 13.

1. The Steelers could be done.
It’s easy to jump to conclusions after a loss like this, but there’s a very good chance that the defending champs won’t make the playoffs this season. They’re now one game behind the Jaguars and two games behind the Broncos in the AFC Wild Card chase with only four games remaining. That’s plenty of time to turn things around, but not with the way Pittsburgh has played over the past month.

2. Pittsburgh’s secondary killed them today.
The Steelers have played without Troy Polamalu before and have played quite well. But it was clear today that his absence has killed Pittsburgh’s defense. When Bruce Gradkowski can throw for 308 yards and three touchdowns on your secondary, you know something is wrong. What’s worse is that Gradkowski made it look easy, too. Joe Burnett’s missed sure-fire interception and Ryan Clark’s personal foul penalty killed the Steelers in the end.

3. Maybe the Steelers just aren’t that good.
Considering they’re in the middle of a playoff race and had lost three games coming into today, the Steelers can’t blame this loss on a letdown or that they played down to their opponents’ level. They just didn’t make enough plays in the end to come away with a victory and maybe the bottom line is that they just aren’t as good as some people thought. Everyone used to say that the lack of a running game would start costing them games, but the running game has been fine under Rashard Mendenhall. Injuries have certainly been a problem defensively, but the fact of the matter is that Pittsburgh just isn’t making enough plays this season to win games. It’s the exact opposite scenario of last season.

4. Gradkowski has proved Cable right.
It’s pretty simple: If JaMarcus Russell were under center today for Oakland, the Raiders wouldn’t have won. I don’t want to sing the praises of Gradkowski after one good game, but the Raiders are 2-1 since Tom Cable made him a starter and he’s at least made Oakland competitive. He wasn’t asked to do much in the first half, but he was outstanding in the second and he continuously stood tough in the pocket and took shots down the field. Given how little of an effort Russell has shown throughout his career, it’s nice to watch a quarterback like Gradkowski will his team to victory.

5. Murphy breaks out.
Subbing for the injured, ineffective Darrius Heyward-Bey today, Louis Murphy hauled in four catches for 128 yards and two touchdowns, including the 11-yard game-winning score with nine seconds remaining. Murphy also scored on a 75-yard touchdown pass from Gradkowski in which he absolutely schooled cornerback Ike Taylor. Too bad Al Davis spent a first round pick on Heyward-Bey in April, because he found a better deal in the fourth round with Murphy.