The Pittsburgh Steelers just trounced the Miami Dolphins on national television in Week 15 and currently sit atop the AFC North. They have won two games in a row and just saw Aaron Rodgers play the best football he's played in three years.
Yet, the vibes aren't exactly all positive everywhere. If you were to ask national sports voice Colin Cowherd, he'd give the Steelers a harsh dose of reality. On one of his latest shows, Cowherd talked about the Steelers and their current situation.
Spoiler alert: it isn't all sunshine and rainbows. He mentioned the recent win over Miami, and sure, that's a positive, but then?
"The downside is, they're currently drafting 20th, and they have a stop-gap at quarterback, no long-term solution, and they don't have any assets to trade up."
Man, does the truth hurt sometimes or what?
Colin Cowherd is only partially right about Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers
Let's get to the second half of the quote, quick.
"So, again, it feels good. It's a candy rush. But it's Groundhog Day. Stop-gap at quarterback, barely above .500, rinse and repeat, and that's where we are," he said.
OK, so let's break this down. On one hand, Cowherd is right about the Steelers having a stopgap at quarterback. This is likely Rodgers' last season, and even if he came back for 2026, do we really think he's good enough to get it done?
He might be just that -- good enough. But, just good enough is not going to cut it if this team wants to contend for a championship, which fans are growing really tired of not doing.
The Mike Tomlin-led Steelers continue to find ways not to end the season with a losing record, but is that truly anything to hang their hat on anymore?
Now, on to the part where Cowherd talks about assets. That's not necessarily true. The Steelers have picks in all rounds except for the sixth, in 2026, and that includes an extra third-round selection from the George Pickens trade.
In 2027, it's a similar story; no sixth round pick.
So, if the Steelers wanted to try and trade up in the coming draft, they theoretically could. If they ended with the 20th overall pick this year and traded next year's first-round pick, that's a good start if they wanted to get into the top 10.
From there, it would be about adding another second and likely third-round pick to the deal in order to move up and get their franchise quarterback. Now, they wouldn't be looking at no. 1 overall, but finding a quarterback inside the top 10 should be feasible at that point.