Steelers Now
Former Pittsburgh Steelers running back and Hall of Famer Jerome Bettis is very bullish on the outlook of the 2026 Steelers.
“Oh, 10 times better. They got more talent,” Bettis said in regards to the Steelers’ 2026 roster compared to the 2025 one, via DJ Siddiqi of The Action Network. “The key when you are diminished from a talent perspective, you don’t give yourself a chance. And I think that’s what was happening. They just didn’t have enough. They had some talented players, but they just didn’t have enough talented players to compete with some of the other top caliber football teams, and you saw it once they got to the playoffs, the latter part of the season when they started to struggle.”
Aaron Rodgers finished 15th in the NFL in passing yards (3,322) last season, along with posting an impressive 24-to-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He played in 16 of the 17 regular season games, only missing the Week 12 game against the Chicago Bears due to a suffering multiple fractures in his non-throwing (left) wrist.
Mike McCarthy’s offense is known to put up points and the Steelers have bolstered their wide receiver corps with trading for Michael Pittman Jr. and selecting Germie Bernard in the second round.
The 2026 season is also expected to be Rodgers’ last season. Bettis thinks that factor should add extra motivation for the Steelers’ veteran roster.
“I think they understood that, and they went and tried to retool and get more talent in the building,” Bettis said. “That’s what they’ve done, and so let’s see what happens this year. Obviously, there should be some motivation knowing that this is Aaron’s last year, and I think that should carry through to the team, and hopefully play with a sense of desperation.”
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Steelers Legend Thinks 2026 Team Is ’10 Times Better’ Compared to Last Year
