The Pittsburgh Steelers extended their impressive streak to 21 years without a losing season — tying the Dallas Cowboys for the longest streak of a .500 record or better in NFL history. But you don't earn hardware for keeping your head above water every year.
In the National Football League, it's all about capitalizing on Super Bowl windows. Teams have a great sense of the strengths and weaknesses of their roster, players who will leave in free agency, and contracts that will need to be handed out. The collection of these factors determines when it's time to go 'all in.'
For the Steelers, there's never been a better time than now.
The reason is simple: the best players on the roster are nearing the final stages of relevancy and of their careers. Despite a phenomenal 2024 season, Cameron Heyward turns 36 years old during the 2025 offseason and we can't expect his dominant run to continue forever.
Perhaps even more concerning are the signs of aging we saw with T.J. Watt in 2024. The 30-year-old is still tremendous, but Pittsburgh's best player is exiting his prime and Watt might not have the same impact a year or two from now. Watt already admitted that he finally started to 'feel old' for the first time during 2024 OTAs.
When Watt and Heyward are past their glory days, it's safe to assume the Steelers will require a rebuilding phase (even if the team refuses to call it that).
Steelers must sell their future to capitalize on a window in 2025
The first step in capitalizing in this rapidly closing window couldn't be clearer: the Steelers must retain Russell Wilson on a new deal. The 36-year-old is set to become an unrestricted free agent, but Pittsburgh must ensure he returns to the team for the 2025 season — even if this means they have to give him a multi-year contract in his old age.
While we would love the Steelers to find their next franchise quarterback, drafting and developing a future signal-caller will take too long and time is already working against them. With Watt and Heyward in their 30s, there's no harm in having an old quarterback either.
Wilson proved to be everything the Steelers hoped for in 2024 and more. Though he's not guaranteed to look like the same player next year, this should be the easiest decision they make all offseason.
From there, the Steelers must operate with one mission in mind: do everything they can to increase their Super Bowl chances in 2025.
This means going out and signing free agents to fill some of the biggest needs on the team as well as paying less attention to roster-building in the NFL Draft and focusing more on players who can help them hoist a Lombardi Trophy next year.
Even if this means the Steelers start backloading contracts to maximize their free agent spending or even trading away draft capital for veterans who can help them win in 2025, it could all prove to be worth the cost.
The 2021 LA Rams proved why capitalizing on windows matters. With a 30-year-old Aaron Donald, head coach Sean McVay and the front office did everything in their power to strike while the iron was hot and win a Super Bowl before Donald's play started going downhill. The Rams loaded up on free agents and executed a blockbuster trade for quarterback Matthew Stafford.
This resulted in a Super Bowl victory for Los Angeles. The Steelers aren't guaranteed to earn their seventh ring in 2025, even if they were to get as aggressive as the Rams. But when your best players are in their 30s and the window is rapidly closing, the only mission is to do everything in your power to win a Super Bowl now.