The Pittsburgh Steelers went all in on the 2026 team, spending a considerable amount of cash on an aging roster in an effort to do one thing under first-year head coach Mike McCarthy: compete for a Super Bowl.

Steelers GM Omar Khan made that clear at the start of training camp last week, setting an obvious standard for the team this season.

It’s Super Bowl or bust, but it’s like that every season for the Black and Gold.

There’s a heightened sense of hype around this version of the Steelers due to all the changes made this offseason, from hiring McCarthy to bringing in a new coaching staff and adding more than 30 new faces to the roster.

But Super Bowl contention, at least for Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, is a bridge too far.

“You got some of these people acting like they can win the Super Bowl. Are you kidding me? You think this team can win the Super Bowl? Are you kidding me?” Florio said of the Steelers, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “I mean, look, I’d love to see it happen. But in the AFC, with the Texans — the Texans are better than they were when they came into Pittsburgh and embarrassed the Steelers. And the Steelers are lucky to be as good as they were last year. And it wasn’t good enough. Are you kidding me?”

It’s hard to know who Florio is really targeting with his comments. Nobody really believes the Steelers are a Super Bowl team. While many believe Pittsburgh is a playoff team with Mike McCarthy at head coach and a star-studded defense getting a fresh approach under new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, nobody is calling for a Super Bowl run.

ESPN’s analytics has the Steelers with a minuscule 1.2% chance to win the Super Bowl. That comes with a 38.5% chance to make the playoffs, which is third-best in the AFC North behind the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals.

While ESPN’s Kevin Clark thinks the 65-1 odds for the Steelers to win the Super Bowl is too low based on the history of the Steelers, nobody appears to be calling for a Super Bowl run from the Black and Gold. It feels like Florio is manufacturing this take.

“The realest analysis I can give you about the Steelers is anybody that thinks they’re gonna win the Super Bowl this year is — I almost said the F word — nuts,” Florio added. “They could. I’m not saying they can’t, but you can’t sit here in August and say this is a Super Bowl team. They got a long way to go to be a Super Bowl team.”

Khan and the Steelers clearly have Super Bowl aspirations, and why shouldn’t they? After all, the roster is improved. There are no real holes and McCarthy brings a fresh perspective that has everyone feeling a bit juiced up.

But nobody in their right mind is projecting the Steelers to win the Super Bowl this year in a loaded AFC, let alone making it to the big game.