BALTIMORE – The conclusion of another season for the Pittsburgh Steelers wasn’t surprising, just disappointing.

One of the NFL’s premier franchises wrapped up its 2024 season with a fifth straight loss, falling 28-14 to their rivals, the Baltimore Ravens, in the wild-card playoffs. The defeat was more convincing than the score suggests. With this loss, the Steelers have not won a postseason game in nine years. Fans who dreamed of a seventh Super Bowl title have seen their team drift further away, now 16 years since their last Lombardi Trophy, and getting surpassed by teams like the Ravens, the Buffalo Bills, and certainly the Kansas City Chiefs, who are on the verge of achieving a rare three-peat championship.

This decline was evident to many, even before the season kicked off. Personally, I believed the Steelers would be better off nurturing a young, versatile quarterback like Justin Fields instead of relying on the fading veteran Russell Wilson. Focusing on building with youth could have meant a minor setback now for significant gains in the future. Unfortunately, both Fields and Wilson now face uncertain futures as free agents, leaving the team to face yet another rebuild at the quarterback position. Compounding the situation is the growing question about head coach Mike Tomlin’s future, especially after he opted to bench Fields in favor of Wilson after a promising start.

“Russ had them fooled for a game or two, but then he returned to his recent form,” noted Marc Ross, former player personnel VP for the New York Giants and a long-time NFL scout, speaking to YSL News Sports. “You can’t mislead teams in the NFL for long. They know what he can do now, which isn’t much. I believed Justin was the better choice when they made their signings.”

“The approach they took was a disservice to themselves. No one in Pittsburgh is celebrating Russell Wilson these days.”

This sentiment is likely to persist as the city’s favorite team faces another long off-season after Wilson fell short of expectations in 2024, even though his stats in Saturday’s game looked decent (20-of-29, 270 yards, two touchdowns). It was the offense’s first game surpassing 200 net passing yards since early December.

“You can’t rely on throwing deep balls and hoping for spectacular catches to win,” Ross remarked. “Once other teams figured out his strategy, it was game over.”

The game was seemingly decided before it truly began, with the Ravens jumping to a 21-0 lead by halftime, bullying their rivals with 464 total yards, 299 of which came from their rushing attack.

Pittsburgh struggled to respond, both on the field and during interviews afterwards.

“Getting run on for 300 yards hurts more than 300 passing yards,” stated safety DeShon Elliott. “We’ve started strong in past seasons, but we tend to falter at the finish.”

Exactly.

Since eliminating the Chiefs in the playoffs back in 2016, the Steelers have averaged 10 wins per regular season but have yet to secure a playoff victory. If achieving excellence is the goal – as Tomlin often claims, “the standard is the standard” – the Steelers have consistently disappointed, squandering the talents of stars like Cam Heyward, T.J. Watt, and Minkah Fitzpatrick, all of whom would be considered some of the franchise’s greatest players in their long history if only they had won rings.

Despite ongoing discontent among fans regarding Tomlin and whispers of his potential departure, the coach’s longest-serving player still supports him.

When asked if Tomlin’s message still held significance, Heyward responded: “Definitely. I focus on our technique and execution, not Mike’s message. I just wish we had performed better. It’s not about his messaging.”

The core issue plaguing the Steelers appears to be the instability at the quarterback position, following the decline of two-time Super Bowl champion Ben Roethlisberger and their failure to plan for his replacement after his retirement three years ago.

“They had an older Roethlisberger and didn’t take proactive steps to find a successor, leading to a desperate situation,” Ross remarked.

“They rushed to draft Kenny Pickett too early, and now they’re scrambling with Wilson and Fields. At least with Justin, there was a glimmer of hope for development early in the season, but then they changed course. I see a significant lack of progression and a disconnect in their philosophy.”

“This isn’t the Steel Curtain days anymore; things are different, and they seem out of touch.”

The recent struggles have been a collective failure, with Pittsburgh losing by an average of 13.2 points over the last month. While they manage to reach the postseason, they show little capability to make an impact.

“These burdens are mine, not anyone else’s,” said Tomlin when reflecting on the ongoing playoff disappointments.

“Clearly, this was a frustrating end to our season tonight.”

They were soundly outplayed by a visibly superior Ravens team, which snatched the AFC North title from the Steelers late in the regular season. Pittsburgh constantly undermined themselves during the game, from tight end Pat Freiermuth’s drop on the opening play to Wilson being pressured relentlessly, to George Pickens disappearing when the game was still undecided.

The once-promising defense quickly fell apart during the opening drive, allowing a 95-yard touchdown run by Baltimore.

Now, the team is heading into another offseason, drafting around the 20th pick in the first round, a position similar to where they selected Pickett in 2022. The former Pitt player spent two seasons with the team before being traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. With a view toward the 2025 draft, which appears to lack strong quarterback candidates—though arguably better than in 2022—their options might include Aaron Rodgers or Kirk Cousins, and possibly Sam Darnold. There’s also a chance they could stick with Wilson and/or Fields.

“This has been one of the best years for me personally as a Pittsburgh Steeler. I hope to stay here,” Wilson expressed on Saturday night.

“I love this game. I still have so much more to give.”

However, Tomlin was not in a position to evaluate much after the defeat.

“I’m not prepared to take a big-picture look,” he remarked about his quarterbacks. “I’m focused on what transpired today. I’m grateful for the efforts shown tonight, as I have been all season. Both are quality individuals in the quarterback role, and I respect the hard work they’ve put in.”

When it came to discussing Wilson’s performance specifically?

“Once again, like our overall play, it wasn’t sufficient,” Tomlin stated. “I truly admire the determination he displayed, especially in how he rallied the team out of the locker room after halftime. But ultimately, none of us performed well enough tonight.”

Still, retaining Wilson or Fields may be seen by fans in Western Pennsylvania as only a sideways move—at best.

“Many Steelers fans feel trapped, as if they have no viable way to acquire a quarterback who can realistically compete with the likes of (Patrick) Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, and even (C.J.) Stroud, (Justin) Herbert, and (Joe) Burrow,” remarked Ross Tucker, a former NFL offensive lineman now serving as a game analyst for CBS and Westwood One, in an interview with YSL News Sports.

“They’re certainly in a difficult position.”

One that they’ve unfortunately been in for over a decade.

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