Behind the Steel Curtain
The Steelers’ playoff struggles continued with a blowout loss to the Texans on Monday Night Football. As always, there are plenty of takeaways to be had:
“Sitting up here again. Same story.”
Star outside linebacker T.J. Watt’s press conference was a short and dismal affair following the Steelers’ loss to the Texans. It was probably the most honest of the team’s postgame media availabilities as well. Watt seemed to be in a similar headspace as most of his fans: Frustrated to continue ending seasons in the exact same way, with no clear changes on the horizon.
The same-ness of the Steelers’ recent seasons can’t go understated. Pittsburgh has finished 10-7 with a double-digit Wild Card loss in three straight years now — part of a playoff win drought that stretches one year shy of a decade and ranks among the worst in the league.
The “fire everyone” rhetoric can sound like a childish reaction, especially considering the stature and success of head coach Mike Tomlin. But it has also become increasingly difficult to refute. The Steelers haven’t finished with a competitive score in a playoff game since the 2017-18 season — a 45-42 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars that wasn’t as close as the box score showed.
At some point, you can’t do the same thing over and over again without changing the leadership of the team. And frankly, if nine seasons without a playoff win isn’t long enough, what length of time will be?
Monday’s loss wasn’t exactly a shock like the finales of some past seasons have been. Going 10-7 and being outmatched against an otherworldly Texans defense were both highly probable outcomes ahead of the fact. But if anything, that makes it even worse. There was never much true optimism surrounding this Steelers team in 2025, despite an offseason plan that wasn’t afraid to make dramatic changes to the roster.
A few blockbuster trades still led to the exact same final result as past seasons. Sure, there are worse loops to be stuck in than 10-7, but rewatch Watt’s press conference: He’s as miserable as anyone. The team’s repeated failures in the postseason have fallen well below not just the Steelers franchise’s standards, but the expectations of any somewhat competitive team in the NFL.
I won’t waste time belaboring points that have been made on this website over many past seasons. If you’ve read this far you probably care about the Steelers enough to know all the ins and outs of the Tomlin debate.
But the point stands. Every year there’s some hope that this will be the Pittsburgh team that’s different from the rest. But over nearly 10 years it’s led to the same unspectacular result.
The team tried the “reset the roster” strategy in the 2025 offseason season, to no avail. It’s clear what needs to be flipped next is the leadership. If not, why is there a reason to believe future seasons will be any different?...
