The Pittsburgh Steelers are 2-1 on the 2025 season, though the early stages of the Mike Tomlin and Aaron Rodgers partnership featured some very close escapes against teams that virtually every NFL prognosticator will agree are a notch or two below the black and gold in terms of quality.
Steelers legend Terry Bradshaw doesn't believe the solid run of form to begin the year is going to be good enough to take the Steelers from a solid team to a true contender, nor are they going to win enough to possibly remove all of the stink floating around Tomlin.
Bradshaw, in an interview with Yahoo Sports, said the Steelers are "always competitive, but they're past being a contender," adding that they haven't been a true contender for the last five years. The Tomlin hype and the buzz around Rodgers seem to have worn off for Bradshaw.
"[Rodgers is] truly one of the greats that we've had, but not now, not at this stage of his life unless he's on a great football team and that's not a great football team," Bradshaw said. "Our offensive line in Pittsburgh has not been good for the last few years..Receivers are basically so-so."
Terry Bradshaw not buying Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Tomlin in 2025 season
While the Steelers have picked up two wins in the first three weeks of the season, they have come in less than impressive fashion. The winless New York Jets handed Pittsburgh the game with a special teams miscue despite scoring 32 points, and the New England Patriots fumbled the ball four times.
The Steelers' current offensive approach may not be super sustainable, as they are trying everything in their power to get the ball out of Rodgers' hands as quickly as possible. With the defense looking much less dominant than many expected, there are plenty of reasons to doubt the validity of this start.
Even with perennial contenders like the Chiefs and Ravens starting slowly with a 1-2 beginning to the 2025 season, the Steelers may not have the offensive creativity or defensive consistency needed to break through. In what will likely be Rodgers' final season, things could get very hairy very quickly.
Bradshaw has been critical of the Steelers before, and Tomlin burnout is very much still a thing, but the Steelers may need to lose a few more games before doom and gloom takes over as the primary mindset this fanbase is in.