Mike Tomlin has all the more reason to keep Steelers and TJ Watt in NFL purgatory

The Pittsburgh Steelers finished the 2024-25 season 10-7, only to lose to the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Wild Card round. You could take that sentence and swap the Wild Card opponent for pretty much any season since the Steelers last postseason win, which occurred in 2016.

Mike Tomlin is a fantastic coach and gets the most out of his players. Unfortunately for him, the Steelers haven't been talented enough to reach the next stage in their development, and when they have been, the coaching has fallen short of expectations. The Steelers are stuck in NFL purgatory – they are just good enough for Tomlin to extend his winning record streak and receive praise from league pundits, but also bad enough to lose in their first postseason game barring an unsuspecting injury to their opponent.

Mike Tomlin has another excuse not to make any Steelers changes

Take 2024 as one example. The Steelers offense fell apart, thanks to shoddy quarterback play. The defense, filled with high-priced veterans, all but disappeared. TJ Watt was a non-factor, and the Steelers refused to move him around the line of scrimmage to make an impact. Their answer? To run it all back another year, but perhaps without Russell Wilson. Great!

Steelers fans were rightly upset after falling short again this season. Pittsburgh will pick in the early 20's, again, which isn't high enough to land their quarterback of the future. The free-agent and trade markets are dry at that position as of this writing. No matter how talented the Steelers may be defensively or the skill positions (which they are lacking at), without a quarterback they aren't a legitimate threat to the Ravens, Bills, or Chiefs.

Super Bowl LIX did provide Tomlin with a glimmer of hope, however. The Eagles are built inside-out and win the line of scrimmage seemingly every game as a result. Philadelphia's defensive line took the Chiefs apart, and Mahomes was never comfortable. The future Hall of Famer uncharacteristically threw two interceptions, including one that was returned for a touchdown by Cooper DeJean. Surely the Steelers can do the same thing, no?

The Steelers can't build like Super Bowl-winning Eagles, and TJ Watt is doomed

This way of thinking misses the point. The Eagles had a historically-good night defensively – a DVOA which would've tied the Ravens for best in Super Bowl history through three quarters. They also have Howie Roseman and have hit on early-round selections in their front-seven. The Steelers haven't always been as lucky.

Philadelphia also has a quarterback in Jalen Hurts, who they selected in the second round and developed. The Eagles featured Kellen Moore on their coaching staff, a young offensive coordinator who will coach the New Orleans Saints next season. Hurts was available for all 32 teams, but the Steelers passed him up. Moore could've been hired away from Dallas a few seasons ago. Instead, the Steelers stuck with Matt Canada and now Arthur Smith.

Pittsburgh is like a beachfront property with obvious structural flaws. Sure, it looks good from the outside, but eventually there is a lot of work to be done, and money to spend. The longer the Steelers wait to do the right thing, the more of Watt's prime they will waste.

Based on their actions early this offseason, it seems like Tomlin wants it that way.