Behind the Steel Curtain
Once again, here we are.
I began last year’s end-of-season piece the same way under very similar circumstances – after a wild card loss in which the Pittsburgh Steelers were sent home in blowout fashion. Changes needed to come then – they didn’t. Instead, the Steelers took an “All In” approach for 2025.
They gave T.J. Watt a contract extension north of $40 million per year. They traded away Minkah Fitzpatrick to land Jalen Ramsey and Jonnu Smith. They traded George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys for a third-round pick after acquiring DK Metcalf. And, of course, they signed four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers to be their quarterback after the experiment of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields failed.
However, after all the moves the Steelers made to go all in, they are right where they were 365 days ago – bounced like a bad check in the postseason’s opening round. They did it Mike Tomlin’s way, and came up empty-handed – he has to finally face the music.
For the better part of a decade, Tomlin has navigated through the maze that is keeping a head coaching job in the NFL, tossing others in front of the train to save his own skin plenty of times in the process. Despite losing an NFL record seven consecutive playoff games and going nine seasons without a playoff win, the facade of promising big changes year in and year out while scapegoating everyone around him has kept Tomlin’s head above water.
After his defense allowed 48 points in a home playoff loss to the Cleveland Browns, Tomlin fired offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner. Matt Canada was then elevated to offensive coordinator while Teryl Austin was named defensive coordinator ahead of the 2021 season, which ended with a 42-21 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the wild card round. In 2023, Canada was let go mid-season. And while that was the absolute right move, Tomlin kept Canada around far longer than he should have. Pittsburgh capped off that season with a 31-17 loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Which brings us to the past two years. Tomlin wanted veterans at quarterback, so they brought in Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. That looked genuinely promising, as the Steeles started 10-3 in 2024 before losing out while the offense was horribly anemic. A 28-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens ended their season.
The aforementioned moves ahead of 2025 were the Steelers’ way of pushing what few chips they had left in the middle of the table, and how did that work out? Watt had just seven sacks while his contract has already aged like milk. Metcalf had less than 1,000 yards receiving while Pickens became an All-Pro in Dallas. Jalen Ramsey was a Pro Bowler, which is great, but Arthur Smith’s personal pacifier, Jonnu Smith, had one of the worst seasons for a tight end in NFL history.
Per David Valente, there have been 784 instances in which a wide receiver or tight end has been targeted...
