It has been quite the roller coaster of an offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers. This follows an equally tumultuous offseason in 2024, which saw the team overhaul the quarterback room and add some major pieces to the team.
This isn’t your grandfather’s Steelers team anymore.
While change isn’t necessarily a good thing, this is a team in need of a facelift. However, the way this team has gone about making those changes has left fans confused.
This team wants to win now, but we trade away George Pickens and redo the quarterback room. They want to build for the future, but they sign an aging cornerback to start. It is a fair question: What exactly is the goal of the Steelers?
On paper, this team says they want to compete, but they don’t seem to be in a hurry. Even in years past, we have seen the team make more aggressive moves to remain in the playoff picture. There seems to be a clear shift in focus this year.
Based on the projections, that isn’t a horrible thing. Following the Pickens trade and the relaxed approach with Rodgers, this team clearly is more focused on the future, not the now.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are calmly rebuilding this roster
While rebuilds can be swift with massive moves and cuts abound, Pittsburgh is taking a more subtle approach. They aren’t going for the worst record in the league, and they are still keeping their roster full, ideally, to help their young roster improve.
While signing Darius Slay doesn’t scream rebuild, he makes sense in this locker room. He can help bridge the gap as a starter while also providing mentorship to Joey Porter Jr. and Cory Trice Jr.
Adding D.K. Metcalf both improves the team now while also getting your top target a season to adjust to the scheme before making a run at things. Pickens served no purpose, assuming this team doesn’t compete this year, so shipping him out now is a logical move.
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I think the biggest reason to point to this is that the team has been tepid with Aaron Rodgers. Last year, they were aggressive when acquiring quarterbacks in an attempt to get this roster ready to compete. They now know that no matter who is back there, this team isn’t getting over the hump this year.
It seems like the goal this year is to develop the roster instead of actually competing. The offensive line is facing a critical year, and we need to know who can and can’t be counted on in that room. The trench investment that this team has made can hopefully begin to blossom.
Pittsburgh has stockpiled draft capital to seemingly make a move at quarterback next offseason. It seems clear now: The team is willing to suffer through this season with an eye on the future. Thankfully, this makes sense.
Now, there are measures that this team will have to take to really complete this process. If the season really goes belly up, we need to prioritize getting young players snaps. If we find ourselves in the thick of the playoff race, all the better.
That said, unlike in years past, Pittsburgh is willing to take a pass on this season with the hopes of setting things up for a better future. It doesn’t mean they are tanking, but it does mean they can tell that their previous strategies were not working.