It is a new era of Pittsburgh Steelers football.
After seven-straight playoff losses, Pittsburgh is in purgatory. Mike Tomlin stepped down as head coach, but bringing in a new or young leader won’t entirely change the book on the Steelers franchise.
Right now, Pittsburgh might be in the worst spot of any team in football. No, they aren’t terrible, but if the ultimate goal is to win a championship, then they might be far behind teams that barely won a few games this year while they suited up for the playoffs.
The words “good enough” in the NFL might be the bane of any fan. Too good to get a high draft pick or fully rebuild, but not at the level to truly contend with the best-run organizations in the league. The Los Angeles Rams won a Super Bowl, rebuilt, and are now on the verge of another shot at the Lombardi Trophy, while the Steelers haven’t even won a single playoff game.
Pittsburgh, a team known for being safe, consistent, and proper, needs a stunning move this offseason that is unlike them.
The Steelers need to go all-in for Indiana‘s Fernando Mendoza.
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Since Ben Roethlisberger retired, it’s been a journey to find the next franchise QB for Pittsburgh, and it’s been nearly impossible. Because Tomlin always gets the team at least 9 or 10 wins, they’ve never been in a position to acquire a blue-chip thrower in the draft.
They’ve tried with Kenny Pickett and given chances to former first-rounders who didn’t pan out in their original situations, like Justin Fields, but it’s been a cycle of offensive misfires propped up by a heroic defense.
With Aaron Rodgers most likely not returning to Pittsburgh, it’s time for the Steelers to go for that all-in, dangerous move that, if it goes sideways, ruins the franchise for the next half-decade. Fernando Mendoza is seen as possibly the only true starting QB in this year’s draft, and it will need to be a lot for the Las Vegas Raiders to part with the pick.
But unlike the Steelers, the Raiders have numerous holes across the lineup that need to be replaced, plugged, and upgraded before Mendoza could do anything offensively in Las Vegas. In a world where the Steelers take a chance and go for the big swing, it could be enough to land the Heisman-winner and national champion in Pennsylvania.
Would two to three firsts, a second, a young player, and possibly a few later-round picks get the job done?
You don’t know if you don’t ask, Pittsburgh.