Despite being one of the most historically successful franchises, the Pittsburgh Steelers have lost their way. It’s been a long time since they have tasted a playoff win, and former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger thinks that getting back to their winning ways — when it really matters — is weighing on everyone in the building.
“Everybody’s gotta be feeling the no-playoff-win pressure,” Roethlisberger said Tuesday on his Footbahlin podcast. “Okay, cool, we’re over .500. Whoopdy-doo now. As much as [Mike Tomlin] can act like that’s not important, that is an important thing. It’s not a bad thing, but winning a playoff game is more important. And obviously getting to a Super Bowl. I just think that the pressure is kind of being felt.”
Pittsburgh hasn’t won a playoff game since beating the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2016 season. That was nearly a decade ago. Roethlisberger himself lost four-straight playoff games, including ones to the New England Patriots, Jacksonville Jaguars, Cleveland Browns and Chiefs.
Things haven’t gotten any better since he retired. Pittsburgh’s managed to be even less competitive in the postseason with blowout losses to the Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens in back-to-back years.
That playoff failure is something the Steelers hope is different this time around. Hence, an offseason full of dramatic changes.
“I think it’s like, ‘Okay, we wanna try and get one for some of these older guys on defense.’ I feel like there’s gotta be some pressure, and it’s like, ‘Listen, we’re all-in,'” Roethlisberger said. “We’re DK Metcalf. We’re Aaron Rodgers, and [Jalen] Ramsey.”
After losing six consecutive playoff games, it’s natural for a team to shake things up. Metcalf replaces George Pickens, whom the Steelers knew they couldn’t count on going forward. Pittsburgh hopes Aaron Rodgers brings the experience, processing and arm talent needed to take it to the next level in the playoffs. And the Steelers ditched Minkah Fitzpatrick, part of a secondary with communication issues last season, bringing in a more versatile defensive back in Jalen Ramsey.
Will these additions actually pay off? Only time will tell. It’s surely more than just a coincidence that the Steelers are making major changes after not winning a playoff game for nearly a decade. It may be naive to think they aren’t truly feeling the pressure, as Roethlisberger suggests.
