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With another early exit from the postseason in an embarrassing Wild Card round loss to division rival Baltimore, the Steelers have gone seven seasons without a playoff victory. Therefore, you can forgive Steelers fans for being a bit salty about the team’s future fortunes.
There is a clamor for change, with fans calling for the firing, trade, or release of almost everyone on the team, from Mike Tomlin to, yes, even owner Art Rooney II. Yet, as our own Brian E. Roach wrote last week for Steel City Underground:
“Every position, from the sidelines to the field, deserves scrutiny. Ownership must ask a ruthless question: Does this person give us the best chance to win?”
Brian is right about scrutiny, but he is also right about the Steelers being an organization that has reaped the rewards of patience in the past. Yet, there must be a sense of looking at the current team – all aspects of it – and asking if this team will get better. We have seen some of the early releases of Super Bowl odds for next year, and the answer from sportsbooks seems to be no.
The Steelers ranked 17th in next year’s Super Bowl odds
DraftKings have put the Steelers’ chances at +6000. No fewer than 17 teams rank ahead of the Steelers in that betting market for Super Bowl LX, including several teams that did not even make the playoffs. Sportsbooks are not oracles, but they are also not biased or stupid. They’ve run the numbers – as it stands – for the Steelers and predict they will be worse than this year.
We know there is a long way to go until the 2025 season gets underway. We also know that sportsbooks have gotten it wrong many times, especially with the Steelers.
Plenty of teams in the past have lifted themselves into being contenders from a lower point than where the Steelers are currently ranked. With free agency and the NFL Draft looming before another season kicks off, it’s not all all doom and gloom for 2025.
That means a common word we have read in the Steelers’ media sphere these last few weeks: “change”. Another season gone without a playoff win means you can appreciate why fans and pundits are asking for it. Some of that change will likely be enforced.
Questions all over the roster
Some fans will argue whether Russell Wilson or Justin Fields played well enough in 2024 to be invested in as a franchise quarterback. The Steelers may bring one of both back, but you get the sense that the team must be on the lookout for a quarterback for the future. The draft in April will throw up limited possibilities in that regard. Outside of whom they already had in 2024, free agency probably won’t yield the answer either.
Quarterback is not the only short or long term fix needed. Several positions that the team entered 2024 with question marks will still need addressed. The wide receiver room still needs an upgrade, and the offensive line was a mess – though getting last year’s first round draft pick Troy Fautanu back could go a long way toward repairing the front line.
Depending on who stays and goes, the front office could be looking for at least one defensive back and possibly a running back. They will need to add more depth at other key positions, especially at linebacker should they cut ties with several players due to maneuvering around the salary cap.
Rebuilding
Fans don’t get everything they want in an offseason, with a handful of exceptions, yet the fact is clear that this is still a team in rebuild mode.
Therefore, the pertinent question is about what level of patience is required. Steelers fans are spoiled. Even winning seasons aren’t enough success to satisfy many of them, including an entire generation that hasn’t see the team have a losing campaign since 2003. To go back over two decades to find a season when a team dropped under .500 is an incredible achievement of the management of the franchise.
Yet, there are some fans calling for the entire organization to be dismantled. However, you don’t necessarily have to sacrifice the current season to build for the future. That was largely proven this year, but of course, some fans don’t understand that this team is still on a clear path of rebuilding. While we’re all optimistic for better results, the Steelers still aren’t on the same level as the Buffalo Bills or Kansas City Chiefs.
Dismantling the team could likely set the entire organization back years, maybe decades. And while it is too soon to say what will happen, many have pointed out that the calls for overhauling everything have come too soon. Be rest assured though, this is a key offseason for the Steelers – perhaps the most important since the late 1990s or 2000s.
What next year’s Super Bowl LX odds say about the current state of the Steelers appeared first on Steel City Underground.