The 2025 Pittsburgh Steelers look plenty different from the 2024 roster. Following a busy offseason of players being cut, traded, or simply allowed to leave in free agency, the Steelers have undergone one of the largest transformations in football. Over the Cap’s Jason Fitzgerald quantified that in a recent tweet, showing only 67.2 percent of Pittsburgh’s roster is returning.
Teams with the least percent of returning players:
1. Jets- 58.0%
2. Titans- 59.4%
3. Vikings- 61.7%
4. Raiders- 62.1%
5. 49ers- 62.0%
6. Dolphins- 63.8%
7. Jaguars- 63.9%
8. Browns- 64.0%
9. Chargers- 64.1%
10. Steelers- 67.2%— Jason_OTC (@Jason_OTC) May 27, 2025
It’s the 10th-lowest percentage of returning players in the NFL. And sixth among teams that don’t have a new head coach or general manager in place when roster turnover is most rampant.
As we noted earlier this offseason, Pittsburgh is set to replace over 8,100 snaps from a season ago. Change starts at quarterback. For the second-straight year, the Steelers swapped out the entire room. Gone are Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, and Kyle Allen (and his two 2024 snaps with the team). At running back, Najee Harris is in Los Angeles. At receiver, George Pickens was dealt to Dallas. The offensive line saw Dan Moore Jr. and James Daniels depart in free agency.
The stronger of the two units, there’s upheaval defensively, too. Larry Ogunjobi was cut and caught on with Buffalo. Inside linebacker Elandon Roberts left for Las Vegas while cornerback Donte Jackson joined Harris as a Charger.
Most of Pittsburgh’s pending free agents have signed elsewhere. The only names still available are TE MyCole Pruitt, CB Cam Sutton, and LB Tyler Matakevich. And CB C.J. Henderson, if you count him after ending the year injured and never logging a regular-season snap for the Steelers.
On the other end of the spectrum, the Denver Broncos have the highest percentage of returning snaps, with 86 percent of them running it back this season. The Cincinnati Bengals also rank in the top five, locking up receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. However, DE Trey Hendrickson still could be traded and dramatically change the team’s percentage.
Time will tell if the Steelers’ offseason change is beneficial or just rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. After another failed attempt to win a playoff game, there was reason to shake up the roster, and Pittsburgh will benefit with the compensatory selections they’ll likely receive in 2026.
