The Pittsburgh Steelers' 2025 offseason has been met with mixed reviews, and if you didn't know whether to scold or applaud the front office for its transactions since March, Pro Football Focus just hit us with a reason to be discouraged.
Trevor Sikemma of PFF graded every team's 2025 offseason. He gave the Steelers a 'C-'. This largely stems from their unknown quarterback situation after they put all of their eggs in the Aaron Rodgers basket.
"The Steelers-Aaron Rodgers situation is still an unknown, which makes this offseason tough to grade," Sikkema wrote on PFF. "Pittsburgh subbed in D.K. Metcalf for George Pickens and paid a new contract and an extra round in value (traded a second for Metcalf and got a third for Pickens) to do so."
Sikkema made it clear that this grade wasn't reflective of the Steelers' draft choices, but rather of the question marks still remaining on the roster.
"I like the additions of Darius Slay and Derrick Harmon and think rookie Kaleb Johnson and his 86.3 career PFF rushing grade can lead the team's backfield," Sikkema continued. "I just don’t know what to make of the Steelers' offseason with so many remaining questions at quarterback."
It's easy to agree with PFF's offseason grade for the Steelers when you think about it like this. But if you're playing the long game, Pittsburgh's 2025 offseason was better than you think.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' offseason moves will help the future more than the present
If the goal is to build a competitive team for the 2025 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers admittedly did a pretty crappy job. The front office has just Mason Rudolph, Skylar Thompson, and Will Howard on the roster at the quarterback position. They spent their first-round pick on a raw 21-year-old with injury concerns, and they traded away their best offensive weapon.
But we can't think about this only for 2025.
If we're being honest with ourselves, the Steelers never stood much of a shot to compete this year, regardless of the moves they could have made this offseason. At most, they may be able to snap their eight-year drought without a playoff win.
However, if you are hoping this team will build a roster that could compete for a Super Bowl a few years from now, they are doing everything right.
General manager Omar Khan raked in compensatory picks for the 2026 NFL Draft while signing players (like cornerback Darius Slay) who didn't count against the compensatory formula. In the 2025 draft, the Steelers once again addressed the trenches. The Derrick Harmon selection proves they are willing to continue building the core of their roster from the ground up.
It's fair for PFF to give the Steelers a 'C-' for this offseason, but a year or two from now, we could have a much higher view of the decisions Pittsburgh made in 2025.