The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a pretty strong offseason, undergoing significant change with the changing of the head coach, adding a number of new veterans to the fold, and changing the outlook of the franchise overall.
Despite the changes, the Steelers are viewed as a team outside of the playoff picture, with virtually no chance at competing for a Super Bowl and low playoff odds.
At least, that’s how ESPN’s Football Power Index sees things.
In ESPN’s latest FPI, the Steelers are No. 22 overall, between the Washington Commanders and New York Giants.
Along with sitting outside of the top 20, the Steelers have just a 1.2% chance of winning the Super Bowl, behind teams like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys and Chicago Bears, and only a 38.5% chance of making the playoffs, third best in the AFC North.
With the Steelers running things back with Aaron Rodgers under center, that’s limited the ceiling and overall outlook of the Black and Gold for the 2026 season.
This time last year, the Steelers had just a 38% chance of making the playoffs based on the ESPN FPI, with a 1.6% chance of winning the Super Bowl. That was under Mike Tomlin and with a roster that had a ton of question marks on it, particularly at wide receiver and in the secondary.
This year the Steelers have changed their philosophy some, shifting to a more offensive approach with the Mike McCarthy hiring and the investments in the offensive side of the football. Those include trading for wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., signing Rico Dowdle, and continuing to bolster the offensive line with the selections of Max Iheanachor and Gennings Dunker in the draft, as well as shifting Troy Fautanu and Mason McCormick to the left side.
The defense still has a ton of star power, too, and continues to see money poured into it after the extension outside linebacker Nick Herbig agreed to on Tuesday. With new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham bringing a fresh approach to that side of the football, the star-studded unit should be improved in 2026.
It’ll all come back to the quarterback though, and with Rodgers at 42 years old and coming off a season in which he didn’t attack downfield much and relied on a short, quick passing attack, there are doubts about his effectiveness in 2026. He’s another year older and the mobility isn’t really there, either.
But with his past success in McCarthy’s offense, the hope is Rodgers can play better and that the Steelers will be able to take a step this season and get over the playoff hump.
Recommended for you