ESPN casts major doubt over Steelers' 2026 season due to 1 key thing
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ESPN casts major doubt over Steelers' 2026 season due to 1 key thing originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Pittsburgh Steelers will now have Aaron Rodgers as their starting quarterback in 2026, as the long-running saga is finally over.
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But while some are on board with Rodgers returning, others aren't so sure, given the clear ceiling the four-time MVP winner has with the Steelers.
Can he lead them to a Super Bowl? Not likely. A playoff spot? Probably not, so what is the reason for his return? That is a great question, and it is likely because, among Pittsburgh's other options, he gives them the best chance to win in 2026.
But ESPN's Ben Solak casts doubt on the Steelers as contenders with Rodgers under center.
“Even with these rose-colored glasses on, the Steelers are not a team with a particularly scary quarterback, and those teams tend not to win many games,” Solak writes. “By just about every stat that we've got, Rodgers was the worst quarterback to make the postseason in 2025. If he made it again this year, he'd likely be the worst in the field again.
“In a division featuring Burrow and Lamar Jackson -- and in a conference that has Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence, Drake Maye and Patrick Mahomes -- it's simply too daunting to put chips on a Rodgers-led team in 2026.”
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What is 2026 pass mark for Steelers?
Well, I'd say a playoff win, but even that feels like a tall order.
Let's not forget, are we thinking the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals are going to be as bad as they were last season? Likely not, and the Steelers only just outlasted Baltimore for the division.
So, even making the playoffs in 2026 looks like a tall order for the Steelers with Rodgers under center. Of course, it could still happen, as Mike McCarthy, as the play-caller, could design some interesting things.
But let's be honest, we don't really have the Steelers as anything other than also-rans in 2026, right?