After a busy offseason that saw a number of big-name players added to the roster under GM Omar Khan, the Pittsburgh Steelers appear — at least on paper — loaded ahead of what they believe is a run at contending for the Super Bowl in 2025.
Players like Aaron Rodgers, DK Metcalf, Jonnu Smith, Darius Slay, and Jalen Ramsey joined the fold this offseason via free agency and trades, plugging major holes on the roster. Yet despite the clear upgrades the Steelers made on both sides of the football, they are being largely overlooked — and in some cases doubted — ahead of the season.
That primarily falls on having the 41-year-old Rodgers under center in what is likely his final NFL season.
For NFL Network analyst Bucky Brooks though, doubting the Steelers is a mistake.
In a piece for NFL.com, Brooks laid out why he believes the Steelers could round into form (with health on their side) as a true Super Bowl contender this season.
“Pittsburgh has enough offensive firepower to support a nasty defense with the potential to finish as the top-ranked unit in every major category (scoring defense, yards allowed and takeaways),” Brooks writes, according to NFL.com. “With a renewed commitment to playing complementary football via an old-school approach that prioritizes physicality and toughness over all else, the Steelers can win by utilizing a formula that has helped the franchise collect six Lombardi Trophies.”
When the Steelers were at their best, they were led by a dominant defense that suffocated opposing offenses, gave a number of different looks pre- and post-snap, blitzed like crazy, and really punched teams in the mouth.
That’s how they played in the 90s and the 2000s, having quite a bit of success in the process.
Over the years, as the NFL game changed, the Steelers got away from that, leaning into the high-flying offensive attack they once had with future Hall of Fame quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. But everything is cyclical in the game of football, and now the league is trending back towards defense, running the football and being physical.
The Steelers are leaning into that — hard. They have a star-studded defense built around a fast, physical front seven. They have some hitters in the secondary, too. Offensively, they have rebuilt the line and want to run the football under offensive coordinator Arthur Smith.
They also want to utilize play-action and take shots down the field. That’s where Rodgers comes into play. He won’t be asked to be the Rodgers of old when he was a four-time NFL MVP, but he just has to do enough.
“Though the Steelers lack the overall talent and depth of some current NFL powerhouses, their ability to transform every game into a street brawl could enable Rodgers to work his fourth-quarter magic and claim a series of one-score wins, ultimately earning Pittsburgh a ticket to the postseason,” Brooks adds. “And in the playoffs, where margins of victory typically shrink, this could be a very dangerous squad with experience, physicality and balance.
“I know a lot of people are dismissing Pittsburgh — a team that hasn’t won a postseason game since the 2016 season — but I think that’s a mistake. If these seasoned Steelers can just stay healthy, they could absolutely round into form as a true title contender.”
Health will be a key factor. The Steelers were banged up late in the season last year, coinciding with a dramatic fall-off, ending a once-promising season in ugly fashion. Depth was significantly tested, and they just didn’t have enough of it.
Now, they have better depth. It’s not up there with some of the best teams in the league, nor is the starting talent up there with the likes of Philadelphia, Kansas City or even Buffalo. But they are better top to bottom than they were a year ago, and they feel they have the quarterback in place to make magic happen and win games.
That cannot be discounted.
We’ll see how much Rodgers has left in the tank. The arm still looks great, but the ability to stay healthy throughout the season at his age is a concern. The offensive line has to protect him. The defense has to communicate better and execute at a high level.
There’s a lot that needs to go right, but if it does the Steelers could find themselves in contention.
