Despite boasting arguably their deepest roster in nearly a decade, the Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t getting much respect from Las Vegas. Sportsbooks have set their over/under win total at just 8.5 games, and The Athletic’s Vic Tafur believes there’s good reason for the skepticism.
He took the over, but with a couple big back-handed compliments attached.
“Aaron Rodgers, 42, decided he wanted to come back, and the Steelers aren’t a serious organization, so they said sure,” Tafur wrote. “There is enough defensive talent here, and I really like the addition of Michael Pittman Jr., so congratulations to Pittsburgh. Nine wins and they’re irrelevant once again.”
I don’t think a more pessimistic take could be written while taking the over. And it looks like he was initially wanting to take the under, evidenced by the Ravens portion of his writeup.
“Plus, I picked division rivals Bengals and Steelers to go under their numbers, so …” he wrote.
Mike Tomlin rightfully received a lot of criticism for failing to win a playoff game for nearly a decade, but he also kept teams competitive during times of high adversity. It’s certainly possible that a new coaching staff could hit hard times during the season and crumble. But McCarthy is a veteran coach who has seen it all, and so are many of his top assistants he brought along with him.
Short of an injury or dramatic falloff from Aaron Rodgers, it’s hard to envision the offense taking a step back. Especially with a proven play caller taking over and with the additions of Rico Dowdle, Michael Pittman Jr., and Germie Bernard.
The defense is a more interesting topic. Can old dogs like T.J. Watt, Cameron Heyward, and Alex Highsmith be taught new tricks after doing things the same way for so long under Tomlin? The age of some key players is a concern, but Omar Khan did well to bolster the depth well beyond what they had last season.
Calling the Steelers “irrelevant” before the season begins may ultimately say more about Pittsburgh’s recent reputation than this year’s roster. The franchise has earned the skepticism after years of early playoff exits, but this is also the most significant organizational reset it’s undergone in decades.
Whether that results in another nine-win season or something much more will be one of the NFL’s biggest storylines in 2026.