With rosters all however solidified within the NFL at this level within the offseason and the schedules set for the upcoming season, analysts are racing to get their win projections in for all 32 groups.
NFL.com’s Cynthia Frelund did simply that Wednesday night time after the schedule launch. In her win projection for the Pittsburgh Steelers beneath head coach Mike Tomlin, she has the Steelers slated for simply 8.3 wins, which implies they might have a dropping season, snapping Tomlin’s streak of non-losing seasons at 18 years, have been that to occur.
For Frelund, the 8.3 wins, which have the Steelers on the surface trying in on the playoff image within the AFC, come all the way down to the uncertainty at quarterback and the powerful stretch of video games post-Thanksgiving that might be actually troublesome for the Black and Gold.
“We nonetheless don’t know precisely who will likely be beneath heart for the Steelers, however one factor is for sure: They may have their fifth completely different beginning QB in as many seasons after they head to New York to face the Jets in Week 1,” Frelund writes concerning the Steelers and the wins projection for 2025. “After all, the spice issue will likely be off the charts if Aaron Rodgers whose two-year run with Gang Inexperienced led to disappointment, is main Pittsburgh in opposition to Justin Fields, the final man to start out a season at QB for the Steelers, however maybe much more necessary will likely be whether or not the brand new QB and new WR1 DK Metcalf have had time to get on the identical web page.
“As of proper now, the post-Thanksgiving window forecasts to be probably the most dicey for the Steelers: They host the Payments in Week 13, then go to the Ravens in Week 14, host the Dolphins on a Monday in Week 15, then head to Detroit in Week 16.”
The uncertainty at quarterback could be very unsettling. They proceed to attend for a choice from 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and the longer it drags on, the nearer they get to the beginning of Organized Staff Actions, which opens on Might 27.
Longtime Steelers’ beat author Mark Kaboly believes it’s solely a matter of time till Rodgers indicators. Nevertheless, till Rodgers indicators on the dotted line and the ink dries, quarterback is an unsure facet of the crew, which hinders them in relation to win projections this season.
Granted, teammates consider in quarterback Mason Rudolph, and a few on the teaching employees have fairly a little bit of familiarity with him, too. In spite of everything, he did lead the Steelers to the playoffs in 2023 and performed some good soccer. However Rudolph, as a beginning quarterback in 2025 to open the season, is a priority.
Add in the truth that the schedule for the Steelers is a tough one, particularly late within the season as soon as once more, and it might be fairly arduous for the Steelers to get to 9 wins to maintain the non-losing streak going for Tomlin, a streak that many throughout the fanbase are sick of listening to about, particularly because the crew continues to go one-and-done within the playoffs and hasn’t gained a playoff recreation since 2016.
Perhaps a dropping season for the Steelers, coupled with the 12 picks they’re at present projected to have within the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh, is simply what the crew must get out of the mediocrity that they discover themselves in.
