Steelers Now
In a 17-game season, there are bound to be some interesting matchups. The Pittsburgh Steelers are headed into a 2026 campaign full of intrigue. The results of this season, which is expected to be quarterback Aaron Rodgers‘ last in Pittsburgh, will determine the team’s strategy going into the critical 2027 draft and for years to come.
That said, here are the five most interesting matchups for the Steelers this season, based on existing storylines. Full schedule available here.
This game is notable for a couple of reasons. First off, it is the season opener, and fans will see the result of months of off-season work for the first time. Secondly, Atlanta has a new head coach in Kevin Stefanski, who knows the AFC North well.
Stefanski was head coach of the Cleveland Browns from 2020-25, leading the team to a playoff win against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. Stefanski performed far better against the Steelers than many of his Browns predecessors, beating Pittsburgh five times in the regular season.
Stefanski knows much of the current Steelers roster well. He surely knows ways to exploit some of the team’s weaknesses.
It will be intriguing to see how the 2026 Steelers, in year one under Mike McCarthy, will match up against Stefanski’s Dirty Birds. It is hard to predict how the Falcons will look with Stefanski. He has much better offensive weapons in Atlanta than he did in Cleveland: wide receiver Drake London, tight end Kyle Pitts, and star running back Bijan Robinson. However, he has a spotty quarterback situation to work with, as the Week 1 starter will either be third-year pro Michael Penix Jr. or recent signee Tua Tagovailoa.
That said, Stefanski has a demonstrated ability to win with subpar quarterbacks. In his second Coach of the Year winning-season in 2023, he led the Browns to 11 wins with a committee of Deshaun Watson, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, P.J. Walker, and Joe Flacco.
The Pats are hated rivals, for obvious reasons; Tom Brady went 12-4 against Pittsburgh in his career, ending three Steelers seasons in the playoffs.
The rivalry died down for a few years by virtue of the Patriots being bad, but it is now back in full swing thanks to New England’s resurgence as legitimate contenders.
The reigning AFC Champions boast rising star Drake Maye, and have paired him with veteran wide receiver A.J. Brown. Mike Vrabel, the Pats’ head coach, was originally drafted by the Steelers.
From an X’s and O’s perspective, the matchups in this game will be cinematic. How will the Black and Gold defense contain Brown’s explosiveness? How will DK Metcalf match up with star New England corner Christian Gonzalez? Who wins the quarterback duel between Maye and Rodgers?
The game is in Foxborough, but there will surely be plenty of Terrible Towels waving in the hostile stadium for a must-see dogfight.
During his career, Ben Roethlisberger went 12-2-1...
