Going Deep with a 2026-2027 Pittsburgh Steelers Season Preview

It’s that time of the year again. September is here and that means the National Football League has returned for another season. In the city of Pittsburgh, there is an air of excitement, nervousness, and no idea of what to expect as for the first time since 2007, there is a new head coach leading the team.

Mike Tomlin resigned and paved the way for Art Rooney to hire Pittsburgh native and former Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys head coach Mike McCarthy. Ironically the only Super Bowl McCarthy has won was with the Packers and they defeated the Steelers. He has brought in an entirely new coaching staff, as General Manager Omar Khan worked with McCarthy to also bring in some new veteran talent.

Under Tomlin the Steelers had lost six straight playoff games and five consecutive first round exits. Steelers Nation is hopeful McCarthy can get the team off that snide. As expected, most prognosticators are seeing the Steelers finishing somewhere between 9-8 or 10-7 and then if they can reach the postseason again, another early exit. Steelers fans are used to this negativity, and it seems every year no one believes in the Black and Gold.

The six straight playoff losses give weight to that disbelief thus why should anyone believe that this team can contend for a Super Bowl again? It could be worse. Just take the success rate of the Cleveland Browns or the Dallas Cowboys who haven’t won a Super Bowl in forever. But Steelers fans, many who did not like the hire of McCarthy at first have now jumped onboard and like the hire.

There are many new faces on the Steelers including a decent draft class that might have brought the quarterback of the future to the team in Drew Allar. In the early season predictions, I had the Steelers getting to the playoffs. I still believe that. I think if Aaron Rodgers can avoid injury, he has better weapons than he did a season ago when he debuted in the Black and Gold.

To preview the season the depth chart follows with an analysis of each position group. What better place to start than the most important position on the team…quarterback.

Head Coach Mike McCarthy when he was in Green Bay or Dallas never carried four quarterbacks into a new season. 2026 is the exception. The Steelers kept all four men on the roster starting with Aaron Rodgers back for what he says is his final season. His age has become a huge factor among critics who believe he may not make it through the entire season and that his elderly status will cause the Steelers’ offense to be less effective. I strongly disagree as I believe if he stays healthy and the offensive line protects him; he has a few new weapons that he didn’t have a year ago so his numbers should improve.

Rookie Drew Allar opened eyes in training camp and the preseason, and it is a common thought he is the franchise quarterback of the future. Last year’s rookie who spent the season on the sidelines nursing an injury, Will Howard, was simply too promising for Mike McCarthy to consider him expendable. Then there is the crafty Mason Rudolph who has always done just enough to hold onto a backup role. If Rodgers gets hurt, McCarthy knows he can rely on Rudolph as a bridge gap to one of the two younger men. I think the Steelers are in excellent shape here and keeping all four was the right move.

Behind Rodgers running the ball will only be one of three men. Rico Dowdle is coming off three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons and one of those was with McCarthy in Dallas. Obviously, the new head coach knows what he is getting in Dowdle. There is Jaylen Warren, a very hard runner and dangerous receiving weapon out of the backfield. A surprising third back to make the team is Eli Heidenreich, a rookie who comes to Pittsburgh after a career with the Naval Academy.

During the preseason Heidenreich carried the ball 11 times and ran for 44 yards a perfect 4.0 per carry average. He also added a touchdown. This young man also made the team as a seventh-round draft pick. Another big plus is he is from Pittsburgh having graduated from Mt. Lebanon High School. At the Naval Academy he was a second team All-American last year. In three seasons with the Midshipmen, he ran for 1,157 yards but if that does not sound that impressive, look at his per carry average. With 169 rushes the kid averaged 6.8 yards each time he ran with the ball. He added 109 receptions for 1,994 yards good for an 18.3 average per catch. In those three years he reached the end zone by ground or air 23 times.

Some of the new weapons for Aaron Rodgers and the quarterback crew will be at wide receiver. Steelers Nation is salivating at the return of DK Metcalf who hopefully learned his lesson after his suspension for slapping a fan last season. But now he has a partner in crime with the ever-dangerous Michael Pittman Jr. on the other side. These two could easily become one of the most dangerous 1-2 punches in the NFL.

The worry is what’s behind the two starters. Rookie Germie Bernard was highly touted and several teams wanted him but he’s now wearing Black and Gold and that’s a plus for Steelers fans. Roman Wilson in his third season may be looking at a make-or-break season. Ben Skowronek is an outstanding special teamer but don’t let him fool you, he comes up with a big reception from time to time. Another rookie to make the team is Kaden Wetjen who should be the Steelers primary return man on punts and kickoffs. While in Iowa playing for the Hawkeyes, he was often running back kicks for scores. He’s fast and dangerous and I’ll put money on the bet that at some point this season he has a special teams touchdown.

If anyone believe this Pittsburgh offense will be inept in 2026, they are in for a surprise. There is now way this unit is going to be unproductive with the aforementioned weapons and then the tight ends have not been mentioned…yet. This is a strong group led by Pat Freiermuth who will probably want to have a breakout season and show the world he can be one of the top receiving tight ends in the league. In my opinion Mike Tomlin underutilized Pat Freiermuth but it is of my opinion, Mike McCarthy being the offensive guru he is will not misuse any player he has on offense.

Coming off an injury Darnell Washington makes his return. This dude is a beast. Plain and simple. Opposing defenders find it very difficult to tackle this mountain of a man. He has the size where he could probably play on the offensive line. He is a very serious threat especially in the red zone. One other tight end that made the team is Robert Tonyan. He is also a big man at 6’5”, 240. A bit smaller than Washington’s size of 6’7”, 264 pounds, Tonyan comes to the Steelers after a season in Kansas City, his third team in a career that began as a rookie in Green Bay in 2018.

Tonyan has caught 149 catches in his seven seasons averaging 10.4 yards per. He also has 17 touchdowns to his credit. Naturally, Chris Boswell handles the kicking duties, a man who is simply in the top five best kickers in the NFL. The next unit to discuss are the big men up front. The offensive line. This is the area of most concern for the coaching staff and Steelers Nation. They MUST protect Aaron Rodgers to keep him upright. The Steelers finally gave up on Broderick Jones as he never reached the skill level expected of him and off to Dallas he was shipped.

In his place comes yet another rookie, the Steelers 2026 first overall draft pick, Max Iheanachor but he will have to outshine Dylan Cook before he can become a starter. This kid has not been playing football that long, but all the scouts say he has potential to be one of the best in the league. He and/or Cook will be surrounded by center Zach Frazier who is quickly becoming the next great center in Steelers history, a position that was manned by Hall of Famer Mike Webster, Dermontti Dawson, but also filled by the great Maurkice Pouncey and the gritty Ray Mansfield. A very reliable Ryan McCollum backs up Frazier.

On either side of Frazier are the guards and they will be Mason McCormick, Troy Fautanu who is beginning to become the player Mike Tomlin had thought he was and either Gennings Dunker another rookie drafted this year and Brock Hoffman. Dunker is a mammoth of a man standing 6’9” weighing in at 319 pounds and he is a mauler. A teammate of Kaden Wetjen, Dunker’s reputation is playing with a mean streak in other words he pancakes defenders. Hoffman is a cagey veteran with time spent on the Cowboys and Browns roster. Then there is the ever-reliable sturdy backup Spencer Anderson.

With Cam Heyward’s brother Connor heading west to the Las Vegas Raiders, the fullback position is now filled by a rookie, Riley Nowakowski fresh off the NCAA champion Indiana Hoosiers. That rounds out the offense and with a new defensive coordinator this season that McCarthy brought onboard former Raiders DC Patrick Graham.

Let’s start up front with the d-line where Cameron Heyward leads the charge. He is joined by the sensational 2025 rookie Derrick Harmon who proved to be a true run stuffer. With the Steelers continuing their history of a 3-4 defense, Keeanu Benton will be the starter but expect to see plenty of Yahya Black and some situational play from rookie Kevin Jobity Jr. and veteran Sebastian Joseph-Day. Keep your eyes on Gabriel Rubio who was opening eyes and making a few jaws drop in the three preseason games.

Linebackers have always been the Steelers gold mine with legendary players like Jack Lambert, Jack Ham, Andy Russell, Greg Lloyd, Levon Kirkland, James Harrison, Kevin Greene, among others. The 2026 version of linebackers gets some flack because of age. Alex Highsmith is in his 7th season, T.J. Watt, the stud of the group in his 10th. Patrick Queen enters season number seven.

But there is a mix of youth in this group as Carson Bruener enters just his second season in the NFL and the same can be said for Jack Sawyer. Payton Wilson has just two seasons under his belt. But Cole Holcomb has been hanging around for eight seasons. All in all, this is still a very good group. If Watt can regain some of his magic and Highsmith can play well enough to convince the Steelers they need to keep him, if Jack Sawyer continues his trend upwards, and rising star Nick Herbig lights it up once again, this unit can achieve a special plateau.

Behind the linebackers are the cornerbacks and all the buzz this offseason has been about contract talks with Joey Porter Jr. That news remains as of this writing as the star cornerback is in the final year of his rookie contract, but he wants a new deal. The Steelers reportedly want him to play out this season before they negotiate a new contract. The question remains does he suit up for the season opener in Atlanta? There are buzz items flying around that he might sit out, that the Steelers could consider trading him, or that he will concede and play.

Without Porter on the field the Steelers secondary is not the same. Pittsburgh brought in veteran Jamel Dean and a rookie Daylen Everette made the team, but the rest of the cornerback room is loaded with seasoned veterans but like Aaron Rodgers, age would be a factor. Brandin Echols is in his sixth season. Dean has been in the NFL for eight years. Jalen Ramsey has been around the block for 10 NFL seasons prior to 2026. Then there is Asante Samuel Jr. with his five years of experience. If this group plays to their potential and Porter stays with the team and plays, the cornerback position could be special.

Next may be the weakest part of the Pittsburgh team. The safeties. At this position, the Steelers have very little depth if any. Just three players were kept on the 53-man roster who play safety. They are Jaquan Brisker, Rayshawn Jenkins, and Robert Spears-Jennings, a rookie. Brisker comes from the Chicago Bears where he spent his first four seasons in the NFL and in 2025 played in all 17 games making 93 tackles, 52 of them solo. He has had four interceptions in four years. If he can repeat those numbers, this will be a good signing.

As for Rayshawn Jenkins, 10 years in the league playing for his original team, the Chargers, then three seasons with Jacksonville, one more with Seattle, and last year he played with the rival Browns. Playing for a bad Cleveland team, Jenkins made 45 tackles, but he did force one fumble and recover another. He has had 11 interceptions over the course of his career. The rookie in this group, Spears-Jennings, recorded a 4.32 40 at the combines so he has speed. How much he contributes remains to be seen.

Finally, we have the punter. I liked Corliss Waitman but before he got the job, he was signed only because Cameron Johnston suffered an injury. When Johnston returned the following year, Waitman won the job. Fast forward to 2026 and now Johnston was the choice over Waitman after spending 2025 with the Bills and Giants. Johnston was sharp in the preseason making 11 punts with an average of 50.5 yards per kick. His long was 58 yards with three boots inside the 20-yard line. As for Waitman he signed with the San Francisco 49ers in the offseason and in the three preseason games he punted nine times for a 47.9 average.

That is your initial 53-man Pittsburgh Steelers roster and now it’s a waiting game and preparation for the season opening game at home playing the Falcons on September 13 with a 1:00 p.m. kickoff. The first five games for Pittsburgh are all winnable games with perhaps the most difficult game being game number two on the road in New England. After that Pittsburgh will be home again for the Bengals, on the road to Cleveland and back home for a matchup with the Colts. I can easily see a 4-1 record after the first five games. 

The bottom line for the Pittsburgh Steelers and their fans this season is to make the playoffs again, but this time win a playoff game and avoid a seventh straight one and done postseason. It’s been 10 years since Steelers Nation last tasted a playoff victory and that was the AFC title game where in New England the Patriots knocked off the Steelers 36-17. It’s been 17 seasons since the Steelers last made the Super Bowl and won it over Arizona and 15 since they last made it to the promised land only to lose to the Mike McCarthy led Packers.

It could be worse. The Dallas Cowboys faithful have not seen a Super Bowl victory in 31 years. Cleveland Browns fans are still waiting for even one Super Bowl appearance. The same applies to the Houston Texans, Detroit Lions, and Jacksonville Jaguars. Those last three teams have had very successful seasons and all three are competing for a deep playoff run this forthcoming season, but for the Browns, they are heading down a path that is going to lead to yet another bummer year. Last year Cleveland won just five games and it’s likely they won’t win many more this season.

Given all that, it does not matter to Steelers fans. Take care of our own business and get that playoff victory in our pockets. Build for future success and hope that the hiring of Mike McCarthy was a wise choice.