As the NFL Combine kicked off, the Pittsburgh Steelers' organization was hammered with criticism by NFL media outlets. On Thursday, ESPN's Kalyn Kahler released the NFPA report cards for all 32 teams. Steelers owner and team president Art Rooney II has some explaining to do.
The Steelers received an 'F' in treatment of families, 'F-' in home game field, 'F-' in locker room, 'D-' in ownership, and 'F-' in team travel. Collectively, the organization graded out ot 32nd out of 32 NFL teams on the 2026 NFLPA report card.
This wasn't completely unexpected, but Rooney isn't the only leader of the organiztion under fire.
While all the talk out of the NFLPA's report card was centered around the Steelers' poor facility and a locker room that included just five bathroom stalls, the general manager quietly escaped criticism... at least at first.
The Steelers were given a 'C+' in the general manager department. On the surface, this looks like an adequate grade (at least in respect to the barrage of 'F's they received). But GM Omar Khan quietly graded out as the fourth-worst general manager, according to the players, and fans are starting to notice.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have an Omar Khan problem, and fans are starting to notice
The only GMs who received a worse grade than Khan were the New York Giants' Joe Schoen, the Cleveland Browns' Andrew Berry, and the Cincinnati Bengals' Duke Tobin. Even Buffalo Bills' Brandon Beane earned a higher grade (A-) than Khan.
Earning a poor GM grade from a disgruntled and unsatisfied group of players is one thing. But when the Steelers' front office moves and team-building philosophy have come into question in recent years, perhaps there's something to be said bout this.
While most fans like what the team has done in the NFL Draft in recent years, it's important to remember that assistant GM Andy Weidl, not Omar Khan, is responsible for constructing the team's draft board (though Khan obviously gets the final say on the selections).
Where Khan is supposed to do his best work is as the 'salary cap guy' and in free agency. But lately, this has been a disaster for the Steelers.
In 2025, Khan sent his second-round pick to Seattle in exchange for DK Metcalf, while turning around to pay the polarizing wideout roughly $33 million per season (top-five WR money in the NFL). He later sent Minkah Fitzpatrick packing for Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith, which proved to be an underwhelming deal.
Khan also overpaid for linebacker Patrick Queen in free agency in 2024 and was naive enough to believe that 34-year-old cornerback Darius Slay was worth a $10 million fully guaranteed one-year contract last year.
Pittsburgh's GM, who earned the nickname 'The Khan Artist' early in his career, has plummeted back down to earth with the fanbase. And if his grade received from the players is any indication, they aren't happy with the results. Perhaps fans have given him far too much credit over the past three years.