Steelers Q&A: Are the Steelers quietly tanking In 2025?

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At the end of last season, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin promised that changes would be coming to Pittsburgh. Like much of the fanbase, Read & React met that promise with some well-earned skepticism. Certainly, changes would be made, but it felt naive to believe they would go beyond the surface level. After all, Tomlin is now the longest tenured coach in all of North American professional sports. How likely was he to change his stripes?

We theorized in the linked column above that the Steelers would not be bringing back much of their free agent class. With the benefit of time and hindsight, we now know that to be true.

Since that column, the Steelers have also traded for DK Metcalf, traded away George Pickens, and — with apologies to Mason Rudolph — have failed to sign a starting quarterback. A potential Aaron Rodgers signing still looms for the organization, but until Rodgers signs an official contract, we cannot count on him for the upcoming season.

This week, Read & React asks the question: Are the Steelers quiet quitting on the 2025 season? Plus, can Calvin Austin III step up to be the Steelers' WR2? We examine with the latest in our “2024 In Review” series.

Are the Steelers trying to tank and quiet-quit the 2025 season? Or are they just directionless?

Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

RP: The period between the NFL Draft and the opening of training camp is the most trying stretch of the NFL calendar. With no games to be played for months, fans are left to stew in the vibes their team’s offseason has created. For lucky fanbases, there’s an optimistic feeling that the new additions to the roster and coaching staff will vault them into title contention. For the less fortunate, pessimism and dread can take hold.

There is no universal consensus amongst a fanbase, of course, but since the Steelers’ maddening three-point loss to the Jaguars in the 2017 playoffs, no debate has been more prevalent in Steelers Nation than Tomlin’s continued employment. Whether you’re ready to run Tomlin out of town or believe he’s a master motivator who’s making the most out of some flawed rosters, chances are your mind on the subject is already made up.

While I’m not trying to drag us into another Tomlin debate, it’s hard to discuss the overall direction of the organization without acknowledging Tomlin’s role in it. Since that fateful playoff loss in 2017, the Steelers have struggled to rise above the NFL’s mid-tier of contenders, losing in the Wild Card round in each of the four playoff appearances they’ve made since.

The Steelers have changed general managers during that time, and while Tomlin and Kevin Colbert had a fairly collaborative partnership, there’s little question that his influence on roster decisions has only grown under Omar Khan.

But ultimately, the Steelers' ability to win playoff games again, let alone contend for titles, rides on Tomlin and Khan getting the quarterback right. So far, they have failed. It may sound harsh, but the NFL is a results-based, zero-sum game.

Not only have the Steelers failed to find their quarterback of the future, but they are also less than two weeks away from opening OTAs with their quarterback room consisting of a career backup who they previously allowed to leave in free agency, a sixth-round rookie and third-string quarterback who has thrown more career interceptions than touchdowns. That’s a brutal look for a proud organization and fanbase.

It’s gotten so bleak that any time the Steelers come up in conversation with my friends or during small talk with strangers, the conversation usually revolves around the question: “What exactly are the Steelers doing?”

The same can be said in any national coverage of the team.

It’s a confusing and frustrating time to be a fan of the Black & Gold. I’m not fully against a “soft tank” for 2025. It’s no fun to endure a losing season, but it’s even less fun to be stuck in mediocrity for years. Drafting a quarterback alone is no guarantee of success, but the modern NFL has made it clear that finding your franchise quarterback outside of the first round, let alone winning titles with them, is more a product of luck than a viable team-building strategy.

Over the last 10 Super Bowls, only the 2018 matchup between the Patriots and Eagles featured a game where neither team started a first-round pick at quarterback, and the Eagles likely wouldn’t have had the NFC’s top seed that season without Carson Wentz, the second-overall pick in 2016. Of the 12 different quarterbacks to start for their team in those Super Bowls, five weren’t first-rounders: Tom Brady, Nick Foles, Jimmy Garoppolo, Brock Purdy, and Jalen Hurts. Of those, Brady and Hurts were the only ones to appear in multiple Super Bowls, with each tasting both victory and defeat on that grand stage.

Meanwhile, the other seven quarterbacks — Patrick Mahomes, Matt Stafford, Joe Burrow, Jared Goff, Matt Ryan, Peyton Manning, and Cam Newton — were not only first-rounders, five were the first overall pick of their draft class and only Mahomes was selected outside of the top-five (10th overall in 2017). All of that is to say, whenever the Steelers find their next franchise quarterback, he’s likely arriving via the draft, and there’s a good chance he’s drafted early.

No organization ever wants to admit it’s tanking, but the way the Steelers are operating has to make you wonder. Not only have they failed to bring in a viable starting quarterback, they practically punted on Free Agency, only signing players that wouldn’t disrupt the compensatory pick formula for next year’s draft.

Right now, the Steelers are projected to have 12 picks in the 2026 draft, but 10 of those would come in the third round or later. Those aren’t the type of assets that let a team move up from pick 21 and into a top-five pick. That would require at least a 2027 first-round pick, and possibly more firsts from future years.

In the end, the Steelers would be in a better position to draft or trade up if they suffered Tomlin’s first losing season. Even then, we don’t know how many quarterbacks will prove to be first-round worthy. There’s a chance that even a losing record is not enough.

That said, I’m wary to give this leadership group the credit that this is all part of some grand plan.

The Steelers are still feeling the ramifications of Colbert’s last five drafts, a stretch where only Alex Highsmith (2020) and Pat Freiermuth (2021) should be considered successful and impactful picks — apologies to the six other remaining players that were Colbert picks during that timespan: Calvin Austin III, DeMarvin Leal, Mark Robinson, Isaiahh Loudermilk and Mason Rudolph.

They also badly mishandled the Justin Fields situation, and while he wasn’t going to lead Pittsburgh to a Super Bowl, it says a lot that he was reportedly their top choice this offseason, even more than Rodgers. Whether this quarterback situation was always the wink-and-nod plan for 2025 or a pivot they were forced into, we may never know.

But either way, Tomlin needs to find his guy in the 2026 draft. With his contract up in 2027, the clock is ticking. Neither Tomlin nor the Steelers can afford to miss.

RB: Ryan provides a good summary above and I’m in general agreement. The annual end-of-season Tomlin debate is not a fun one to revisit, especially as it always feels hilariously unproductive given that everyone knows Pittsburgh won’t be moving on from the veteran head coach anytime soon.

And is that really a bad thing? Don’t get me wrong — Tomlin has played a role in the Steelers’ playoff failures over the years, but my answer is more of a cop-out these days: Until Tomlin gets another franchise quarterback, we won’t know for sure.

Tomlin has had to show up with a knife to a gunfight the last several years, going from end-of-career Ben Roethlisberger to a revolving door of Mason Rudolph, Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett, Justin Fields, and Russell Wilson in an AFC full of star quarterbacks. Somehow, that’s resulted in good season records and a number of playoff berths, but you can only dodge so many bullets.

As a result, it’s beyond clear that the Steelers are eyeing a quarterback in 2026. They loaded up on compensatory picks for trade-up ammo and avoided investing much in the position during the 2025 offseason (barring an overly-expensive Aaron Rodgers deal). The 2026 quarterback class already looks substantially deeper than 2025’s, which further supports the strategy even though there will be variance between now and April.

Plus, Omar Khan left about $30 million in cap space unspent this offseason that looks to roll over into the next. A defense-heavy draft showed a focus on raising the roster’s floor rather than the ceiling. And while the team moving on from George Pickens wasn’t all that interesting, the timing was — if Pittsburgh was set on building a win-now roster in 2025, they probably would’ve put up with rookie-deal Pickens for one more season.

That’s a front office prioritizing the future.

But “tanking” — which I take as meaning “deliberately losing,” isn’t what the Steelers are doing. The front office simply isn’t over-investing in what it knows is not a Super Bowl-caliber roster.

Beyond that, I’m not sure if tanking in the NFL is as effective or as common as some might believe. We see teams “win games they shouldn’t” late every season when only draft positioning is on the line. And we also see the league’s worst teams struggle to get out of the basement year after year despite handfuls of top-10 picks.

But the Steelers are in desperate need of change after their past several years of stale results, absolutely. A “soft tank” or “soft rebuild” — rather than the full thing — is completely reasonable.

As Ryan pointed out, the last few Kevin Colbert drafts left the Steelers in a rut that Khan has done a good but imperfect job steering the Steelers out of. What’s important is staying on schedule.

Last week, I pointed out how the Steelers’ pursuit of the 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers and signing of the 34-year-old Darius Slay didn’t seem to mesh well with the rest of the offseason. It’s not that Pittsburgh isn’t allowed to take itself seriously this year, but neither player will be long-term answers for a roster that needs to prioritize exactly that.

That’s to say, I have some gripes with Khan’s process here and there, but this is the most direction the Steelers front office has had since the Ben Roethlisberger years.

They know the team needs a franchise quarterback soon, but didn’t panic and reach for one in the 2025 draft, instead putting themselves in great position for 2026. They’re aware that the team can’t be in win-now mode this season, but they’re also not blowing up the Steelers’ winning culture in a risky, all-in bet (A few more coaching changes would’ve been nice, though).

However, over-investing in an Aaron Rodgers 2025 could throw a wrench in the process. If that’s avoided, it’s a good plan. But of course, it all hinges on getting those 2026 draft picks right.

Steelers in review: WR Calvin Austin III

Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

As always, we’ll be divvying up our review and analysis. Ryland will focus on Austin’s work from the slot, and Ryan will examine if Austin can be a viable outside receiver.

RB: Per usual, I’ll start with a short recap of where the player is at in their career right now. Drafted in the fourth round in 2022 by the Steelers, Calvin Austin missed his entire rookie season with a foot injury. With doubts about how he’d hold up in the NFL with his 5’9, 162-pound frame from the moment he was selected, the injury led to doubts about how big of a role Austin could have with the Steelers ahead of his first full season.

In 2023, Austin managed 17 receptions for 180 yards and a touchdown, also earning the starting punt returner role. His lone touchdown — a 72-yarder — showed off his 4.32 speed, but he was still buried on the depth chart behind George Pickens, Diontae Johnson, and Allen Robinson II.

Then came 2024. Austin became the team’s WR3, but he was WR2 in terms of production, logging in a big leap in receptions (36), receiving yards (548), and receiving touchdowns (four). He kept the punt returner job, adding another touchdown.

Austin played well over half of his snaps in 2024 in the slot, where he’s expected to start once again in 2025. With his build, it makes sense. While he’s a physical player for his size, Austin could get slowed down with more physical coverage, and the Steelers liked to use him in motion quite a bit.

While Austin had a lot of good plays on the outside, as Ryan will get to below, I think continuing to hone his game in the slot will be the best route forward.

However, Austin doesn’t currently have the stereotypical slot skill set. He’s currently at his best on deeper routes thanks to his elite speed. Austin gets off the line and past linebackers in a blur, making him a weapon on deep crossers.

While I mentioned earlier that Austin could get rerouted by linebackers and defensive backs, he actually possesses a good release package to go along with a great first step, further helping him get downfield fast.

Austin’s usage as a deep threat from the slot added a fun dynamic to the Steelers offense in 2024, but what about more traditional slot usage?

Austin’s speed and suddenness did make him a good fit for the quick game, especially when it came to exploiting cushions:

As a blocker, no one will mistake him for a tight end, but he showed good effort when runs came his way, even helping out chipping from time to time when in tight formations.

And his side gig as a punt returner definitely shows up when it comes to making tough catches in between defenders.

However, being 5’9, Austin doesn’t have the catch radius to be an ideal chain-mover.

While Austin is plenty quick in the slot, he still needs to work on being more precise as a route-runner. There can be some drifting and inconsistency on his shorter routes that hamper his separation.

However, some of Austin’s struggles to make a bigger impact in the Steelers’ offense simply come down to, well, the Steelers offense itself. It’s not a big surprise, but Austin was open a whole lot more than he was thrown to in 2024, whether it was not being part of the read or Russell Wilson being too pressured to see him from the pocket.

Also, one of the few downsides of being as fast as Austin is that he tends to cross zones really quickly. It requires good timing on offense to make that a positive, and the Steelers offense was definitely not timing-based in 2024.

While I’m not a fan of the Steelers bringing in Aaron Rodgers at this point this season, I do think it would be good for Austin specifically. If he continues to develop as a route-runner, he could succeed as that quick, underneath route-runner that a Rodgers offense covets. Austin has the skill set to fill that role, even if he hasn’t completely come into yet.

Rodgers or not, I’m excited to see what he does in the slot in 2025.

Ryan, what did you see from Austin on the outside last season? And should he be getting more WR2 buzz heading into training camp?

RP: I sort of spoiled it in an earlier answer, but I’m not ready to buy into the WR2 hype for Austin — in fact I’m not sure I’m ready to buy into him as the WR3. While I do think Austin has enough going for him to be a role player on an NFL team, I’m just not sure he’s much more than that.

As Ryland alluded to in his analysis, Austin is best operating from the slot, but he played outside more than you might remember. Per PFF’s charting, Austin lined up wide on 43% of his offensive snaps (270) in 2024.

Primarily, Austin's best and most useful role outside is not a sexy one. NFL defenses are aware of his speed and must respect that part of his game. For that reason, Austin is often just a decoy running clearout routes to create space for his teammates.

A good portion of Austin's snaps outside are used to create space for others. Whether he's out wide by himself, or stacked/bunched with other WRs, he's often running clearout routes pic.twitter.com/cs67aRjto4