BALTIMORE – Another lackluster ending for the Pittsburgh Steelers, as their season concludes without much fanfare.

The prestigious NFL team faced their fifth straight loss, going down 28-14 to their rivals, the Baltimore Ravens, in the wild-card playoff round. The game wasn’t as close as the score suggests. Pittsburgh will now wait at least nine more years for a postseason victory. Once hopeful for a seventh Super Bowl title, the Steelers are now 16 years removed from their last championship win and seem to be falling further behind teams like the Ravens and Chiefs, who are aiming for an unprecedented three consecutive titles.

Many could foresee this decline – some predicted it as early as five months ago. Personally, I believed the Steelers would benefit more from investing in a young, versatile quarterback like Justin Fields rather than an aging Russell Wilson. A strategy focusing on youth and potential could have set them back briefly, perhaps leading to Mike Tomlin’s first losing season, but would have paved the way for greater success in the future. Now, with both Fields and Wilson approaching free agency, the Steelers face another potential overhaul at the quarterback position. Tomlin’s future appears uncertain as he benched Fields in October after a promising start, opting instead for Wilson, who has struggled.

“Russ put on a good show for a game or two, but soon returned to his typical self,” remarked Marc Ross, a former player personnel vice president at the New York Giants and a long-time NFL scout to YSL News Sports. “You can’t keep up a facade in the NFL; teams have caught on to what he can do, which isn’t much. I always thought Justin was the better choice.”

“They really messed up on that signing. Nobody in Pittsburgh is excited about Russell Wilson anymore.”

This sentiment is likely to linger in the Steel City as the beloved team faces another discouraging offseason after Wilson’s performance in 2024 turned out to be more illusion than solution. Although his statistics from Saturday’s loss (20 completions on 29 attempts, 270 yards, two touchdowns) might look decent, they were not enough to turn the game around. This marked the offense’s first game exceeding 200 net passing yards since December 1.

“You can’t rely on throwing deep balls and counting on lucky catches to win games,” Ross emphasized. “Once other teams caught on to that strategy, their chances were gone.”

Indeed, it felt like the game slipped away almost before it started. The Ravens quickly took a 21-0 lead in the first half and dominated the Steelers with a total of 464 offensive yards, including 299 rushing yards.

Pittsburgh had no solutions, either on the field or in post-game discussions.

“Allowing 300 rushing yards is worse than conceding 300 passing yards,” remarked safety DeShon Elliott.

“We’ve shown we can start strong at the beginning of the season, but then we just fell apart at the end.”

That’s accurate.

In the past eight seasons since they eliminated the Chiefs from the playoffs in 2016, the Steelers have averaged ten wins in regular season yet failed to secure a single postseason victory. If the standard is remarkable excellence – “the standard is the standard,” as Tomlin often states – then Pittsburgh has repeatedly fallen short and wasted the talents of dedicated players like Cam Heyward, T.J. Watt, and Minkah Fitzpatrick, who would all certainly be viewed as legends in the franchise’s rich 92-year history if only they had championship rings.

Despite growing discontent among fans regarding Tomlin, rumors have arisen that he might also be a trade candidate, but his longest-serving player still supports him.

When asked if Tomlin’s message remained effective, Heyward responded: “Absolutely. I focus less on Mike’s message and more on our technique and execution. I just wish we could have performed much better. It’s not about the message.”

The core issue for Pittsburgh is clearly the ongoing turmoil at the quarterback position, stemming from the decline of two-time Super Bowl champion Ben Roethlisberger and the team’s failure to plan for his departure since he retired three years ago.

“They had an aging Ben Roethlisberger and chose not to take a proactive approach in finding his successor, leaving them in a desperate situation,” noted Ross.

“They reached for Kenny Pickett in the draft and ended up with a last-minute fix using Russ and Justin. At least Justin has the potential for development – which seemed evident at the beginning of the season – but then they pulled him. I believe there’s a fundamental disconnect or lack of forward-thinking within that organization.”

“This isn’t the Steel Curtain anymore; things have changed. They are out of touch and it has become obvious.”

The pattern of failure has become glaringly clear over the last month. Pittsburgh’s losses have averaged 13.2 points. While the Steelers have made it to the Super Bowl playoffs, they haven’t posed any real threat.

“These losses are on me, not the team,” Tomlin stated when reflecting on the continuation of their playoff disappointments.

“It certainly ended in a frustrating way tonight.”

The Steelers were thoroughly outperformed by a clearly superior Ravens team that clinched the AFC North title from them late in the regular season. They also sabotaged their own efforts with mistakes on Saturday – from tight end Pat Freiermuth’s missed catch on the first play to Wilson being consistently pressured, and another lackluster performance from wide receiver George Pickens when the match was still within reach.

The once-revered defense faltered from the very beginning, allowing Baltimore to execute a 95-yard touchdown drive.

Now, they’re preparing for another offseason, with the 2025 draft likely starting around the 20th pick in Round 1, just like when they selected Pickett in 2022. After two seasons with the team, he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles. With the upcoming draft appearing to offer few strong quarterback choices, a little better than in 2022, they might consider veterans like Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins, or Sam Darnold. It’s possible they will attempt to stick with Wilson and/or Fields for another shot.

“This has been one of the best seasons for me as a Pittsburgh Steeler. Of course, I want to stay here,” Wilson expressed after the game on Saturday night.

“I love this game deeply and feel I have plenty of football left to play.”

However, Tomlin wasn’t ready to evaluate anything after the defeat.

“I’m not in a position to take a broad view,” he stated regarding his quarterbacks. “I’m focused on what transpired today. I genuinely appreciate the work ethic shown tonight, which reflects the whole season. Both quarterbacks are quality individuals, and I’m grateful for their contributions.”

What about Wilson’s performance specifically?

“It mirrored the team’s overall play,” Tomlin remarked. “It simply wasn’t sufficient. Still, I admire his determination and the way he rallied the team out of halftime. But as a group, none of us met the standards tonight.”

Nonetheless, deciding to keep Wilson or Fields may be perceived by fans in Western Pennsylvania as merely treading water – at best.

“I know many Steelers fans believe they are stuck in limbo without a viable way to acquire a quarterback who can genuinely compete with stars like (Patrick) Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, and Josh Allen, or even (C.J.) Stroud, (Justin) Herbert, and (Joe) Burrow,” remarked Ross Tucker, a former NFL offensive lineman now providing analysis for CBS and Westwood One, to YSL News Sports.

“It feels like a tough situation for them.”

This is a predicament they’ve faced for over a decade.

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