Pittsburgh Steelers fans were left frustrated once again with how the 2025 season ended for their favorite team. While the Steelers won their division, they once again failed to win a playoff game. It was more of the same, reinforcing the narrative that the Steelers are stuck in a cycle of mediocrity. Many people blamed Mike Tomlin for the team staying stuck in neutral, but he’s gone, with Mike McCarthy stepping in as Pittsburgh’s new head coach. However, Carolina Panthers long snapper J.J. Jansen still sees more of the same coming for the Steelers this season.

“They will be fine,” Jansen said recently on the NFL Daily podcast. “I was in Green Bay when Aaron [Rodgers] was a starter for the first time with Mike McCarthy. It’s going to be a fine working relationship…I thought Aaron played okay last year. You’re not paying Aaron $45, $50 million dollars.

“I just don’t know that the team’s all that interesting, especially when you consider that division’s also got the Bengals and the Ravens…I still feel like they are a 9-8 team. They’re going to beat some teams that they shouldn’t and they’re going to lose some games that they shouldn’t. I would certainly trust the ball in Aaron’s hand in the fourth quarter, but it’s just an uninteresting 9-8, 10-7, 7-10 kind of team for me.”

The Steelers don’t have the star power that other AFC North teams do, especially under center. Rodgers is one of the best to ever do it, but he’s 42 years old. While he’s got some gas left in the tank, he’s not on the same level as Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow. Both are among the NFL’s best quarterbacks.

It’s easy to see why some might write off the Steelers in favor of the Bengals or Ravens. However, Pittsburgh has shown that it shouldn’t be underestimated. Having a superstar quarterback doesn’t automatically make a team good.

That was evident last year. The Steelers won the AFC North, while injuries and other issues plagued the Ravens and Bengals.

Perhaps Jansen’s analysis of the Steelers would feel truer if Tomlin was still their head coach. However, say what you want about the Steelers, but they don’t look uninteresting. They have a new head coach for the first time in almost 20 years. There have been more popes since 1970 than there have been Steelers head coaches.

That alone makes Pittsburgh at least a little interesting in 2026, and the team has other intriguing storylines, too. That includes Rodgers saying this will be his final season. He’s not the same player that he once was, but he’s still a legend. Also, he and McCarthy reuniting adds another layer to the four-time NFL MVP’s retirement tour.

The Steelers play Jansen’s Panthers in Week 16 this year, so they’ll have a chance to prove him wrong. That’s still far away, so a lot can happen between now and then, but the Steelers improved their roster this offseason. Couple that with their new coaching staff and they could break through the ceiling that they’ve been stuck under for years.