Steelers/NFL category, Page 5
Think fast: Steelers try to avoid another slow start, end playoff skid vs. Texans
Seventy-six different players have started a playoff game for the Pittsburgh Steelers during their six-game postseason losing streak. The skid has endured through four players who started at quarterback, 12 at linebacker and 15 on the offensive line. Arthur Smith became the fifth man to call plays for the Steelers...
Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud living up to high expectations
Holding the second pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Houston Texans were set on taking a quarterback. They just had to wait to see what the Carolina Panthers would do first at the position. When the Panthers selected Alabama’s Bryce Young with the top pick, the Texans picked Ohio...
A harrowing look back at each defeat of Steelers’ active 6-game playoff losing streak
Grab a six pack, Pittsburgh Steelers fans. You’ll need it to get through the memories conjured up in looking back at this sextet of poor postseason performances that comprise the Steelers’ current six-game playoff losing streak: 2016 AFC championship at New England The Steelers’ skid began modestly enough...
In what could be final NFL game, WR Adam Thielen brings veteran savvy to Steelers
From saying goodbye to his home state and a franchise he’s long been associated with, to navigating the waiver wire to a quick unforeseen promotion up the depth chart to a wild, highly meaningful, do-or-die game, it’s been quite a 5 ½-week span for Adam Thielen. “It definitely has been...
Jonnu Smith added to Steelers’ injury report; Jaylen Warren returns to full participation
Jonnu Smith was an addition to the Pittsburgh Steelers injury report, but Jaylen Warren got over his illness and is well back on track to play in the team’s playoff opener. Smith, a veteran tight end, was listed as limited at Friday’s practice on the injury report. Smith has a...
‘I’m going to shine when my time comes’: Steelers’ Kaleb Johnson deals with benching
Kaleb Johnson stopped to ponder the question. A star running back in college who was a relatively early draft pick for which great things were foreseen in his rookie season, Johnson dealt with the indignity of being designated a healthy inactive for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ final three regular-season games. Has...
DT Isaiahh Loudermilk returns to practice for Steelers, remains on IR
This season has been one unlike any other for Isaiahh Loudermilk in his football career. A high-ankle sprain suffered in Week 2 has had him on injured reserve for almost four months. “Five years here (with the Pittsburgh Steelers), five years (in college) at Wisconsin, never had a year end...
Amid some recent misses, Steelers kicker Chris Boswell embraces adversity
As a crestfallen Tyler Loop walked off the Acrisure Stadium grass Sunday night, the Baltimore Ravens rookie kicker was approached by Pittsburgh Steelers counterpart Chris Boswell. The interaction only lasted a few seconds. To Boswell, though, the brief talk was important, if only to provide a small measure of support...
Mark Madden: If the Steelers can survive the 1st quarter, expect another winnable rock fightVideo
Mike Tomlin’s teams are always prepared. Except when they’re not. Like they weren’t in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ last five playoff games, all losses. Last season, the Steelers were down by 21 to Baltimore at halftime. The season before, they trailed Buffalo by 21 midway through the second quarter. In the...
Football Footnotes: Refuting recent Chris Boswell concerns; noteworthy Steelers-Texans stats; Mike Tomlin mind games
We were going to post our weekly Friday “Football Footnotes” whether the Pittsburgh Steelers were in the playoffs or not. But since they are, it sure makes things a lot more fun. Here’s a look at a few interesting leftovers from Mike Tomlin’s Tuesday press conference, some potentially misplaced concerns...
First Call: Injury updates on key Houston CBs; assistant coach from Super ’70s Steelers retires at age 87Video
There is a significant injury update coming from Houston as the Texans prepare to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in the playoffs Monday night. A member of the Super ’70s Steelers coaching staff is finally retiring. We preview Pitt’s next basketball game against a longtime foe. Plus, we preview the upcoming...
RB Jaylen Warren misses Steelers practice because of illness
During his weekly news conference Tuesday, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin termed his team as “relatively healthy” headed into the playoffs. Aside from an illness afflicting one player, that was true during the first practice of the week leading into the team’s playoff opener. Starting running back Jaylen Warren did...
Steelers DC Terryl Austin not surprised by T.J. Watt’s heavy workload in return from lung injury
Only weeks removed from lung surgery, linebacker T.J. Watt maybe surprised some by taking on a heavy workload in his first game back, but defensive coordinator Terryl Austin was not among them. “I’m not surprised with anything I get from T.J. just because I know the way the guy’s always...
Aaron Rodgers relishes playoff return, says Steelers silenced Mike Tomlin’s critics
Returning to the playoffs after four years away is enjoyable for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, but so, too, was silencing coach Mike Tomlin’s loudest critics along the way. The one-time Super Bowl MVP hasn’t played in a postseason game since the 2021 season, but the longest playoff drought of...
Tim Benz: With spotlight on Texans’ defense, Steelers need improved effort with 2nd look at C.J. Stroud
In advance of the Steelers-Texans playoff game Monday night, a significant percentage of the attention has been paid to Houston’s defense. Rightfully so. It’s No. 1 in terms of fewest yards allowed (277.2 yards per game) and second when it comes to points allowed (17.4). The other side of the...
TV Talk: Why an NFL playoff game on Monday?Video
A Monday night Steelers playoff game might seem like a novel concept, but it’s not new to the NFL. In 2021, ESPN signed a five-year agreement to broadcast Monday night games following the first weekend of the NFL playoffs. That’s how the Steelers wound up being scheduled to play the...
Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith to interview with Titans for head coach vacancy
The Tennessee Titans’ list of head coaching candidates includes Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith. The Titans have asked to speak with Smith, who found success in two seasons as the Titans’ offensive coordinator in 2019-20, orchestrating an offense then led by Derrick Henry. According to The Tennessean, the Titans...
First Call: Jerome Bettis critical of Steelers’ home crowd vs. Ravens; big-name QB enters NFL Draft
Thursday’s “First Call” has some interesting comments from Pittsburgh Steelers legend Jerome Bettis about the crowd at Acrisure Stadium. The NFL Draft just got an interesting submission. Russell Wilson is making offseason headlines. And we get some praise for one of Robert Morris’s hockey captains. ______________________________ Ty time With the...
U mad, bro?: Media coverage of DK Metcalf, lack of faith in Steelers challenged by readers
The Steelers swept their arch rivals. They qualified for the playoffs. They won the AFC North. Yet they still somehow managed to do it while making us all a little crazy along the way. As a result, our first “U mad, bro?” of 2026 picks up where 2025 left off....
Don’t blame this Franklin Regional grad for hoping the Steelers lose Monday. It’s his job
Nate Leopold used to sit in the yellow seats at Heinz Field — before it became Acrisure Stadium — twirling a Terrible Towel and cheering on the Pittsburgh Steelers. When they played “Renegade,” he stood up and yelled like the 68,000-plus going crazy around him. “The first year I remember...
Texans’ defense reached historic status that Steelers strived to achieve
The Houston Texans achieved a status on defense that Mike Tomlin erroneously predicted for his Pittsburgh Steelers unit in the summer. Historic. When the Steelers meet the Texans on Monday night at Acrisure Stadium in the AFC Wild-Card round, it will be the visiting team bringing a record-setting defensive unit...
Steelers 4 Downs: Aaron Rodgers peaking at right time, Texans a rare 3-WR opponent
1. Rarin’ Aaron Aaron Rodgers turned 42 years old Dec. 2. As the sun rose on that chilly Tuesday morning, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ season seemed to be cratering. And to some degree, so did the career of Rodgers, at least inasmuch as it could have careened to an uninspiring end....
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin reflects on John Harbaugh’s firing, says lack of patience defines modern NFL
The Baltimore Ravens firing coach John Harbaugh is indicative of “today’s sport culture,” said Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, who lamented the lack of patience afforded to most NFL coaching jobs. The AFC North rivals coached against one another 44 times, the second most in NFL history. But Harbaugh was...
Mark Madden: Myles Garrett holds the NFL sacks record, no matter how Steelers fans spin it
Myles Garrett set the single-season sack record last Sunday when Cleveland beat Cincinnati. Garrett’s feat triggered a few sidebars. • Did anybody in seasons past perform in more record-worthy fashion despite having fewer sacks than Garrett? • Did Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow lay down on Garrett’s milestone sack, effectively giving...
Tim Benz: Steelers’ playoff optimism is legit. But don’t ‘unpack’ those bags until it’s proven true
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was asked Tuesday about the importance of the team finally winning a playoff game for the first time since the 2016-17 season. It’s a slump that has now lasted almost a decade. It is hanging over the entire franchise and Tomlin’s personal legacy. “I’m certainly...
