The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in the middle of their three-day mandatory minicamp, annually the final step in their offseason workout program. While the focus now is on playbook installation and getting all 91 players on the same page so that competition can begin in earnest in training camp, attention soon will turn to the specific challenges the team will face during the 2026 season. As such, with the schedule now laid out, we are taking a closer look at each opponent on the Bucs' schedule, examining what they did last season, which players and coaches have come and gone in the offseason and some as-yet-unanswered questions. Today's focus is on the reigning champs of the rugged AFC North, a Pittsburgh Steelers squad led by the reunited duo of Mike McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers.

2025 Results

The 2025 Steelers started fast, winning four of their first five, and ended strong, going on a 4-1 run to finish 10-7, which was enough to take the AFC North crown. That's no small feat in a division that features the Lamar Jackson-led Baltimore Ravens and the Joe Burrow-led Cincinnati Bengals; in fact, the same 10-7 records the Steelers accrued the previous two seasons had only earned them Wild Card berths. Unfortunately, Pittsburgh was not able to capture its first postseason victory since 2016, losing to Houston in the Wild Card round.

The season started with a road trip to play the New York Jets, a matchup that drew extra attention because it pitted new Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers against the team he had played for the previous two seasons. Rodgers threw four touchdown passes in the game but the Steelers didn'tsecure their 34-32 victory until Chris Boswell kicked a 60-yard field goal with a minute remaining. This strong early-season stretch also featured a 21-14 win over New England, the eventual AFC champs, in Week Three, in which T.J. Watt led a five-sack effort by the Pittsburgh defense with two takedowns of Drake Maye. The week before, Pittsburgh had also faced the eventual NFC champs, losing at home to Seattle, 31-17 as Rodgers was picked off twice.

After that 4-1 start, the Steelers dropped five of their next seven, including a Week Eight contest against Rodgers' other former team, the Packers. Rodgers threw two touchdown passes but the Steelers' defense gave up a pair of scores to Packers tight end Tucker Kraft in a 35-25 decision. This was a tough portion of the schedule for Pittsburgh, as it also suffered losses to three other eventual playoff teams, the Chargers, Bears and Bills. Rodgers and company were able to hand Indianapolis only its second loss in nine weeks, as the Steelers picked off Colts quarterback Daniel Jones three times in a 27-20 squeaker.

Rodgers, who had famously told Bears fans he owned them late in his tenure with the Packers, didn't get a chance to enjoy Soldier Field one last time because he missed the Week 12 game in Chicago due to fractures in his left wrist. A T.J. Watt sack of Caleb Williams led to a Pittsburgh fumble recovery for a touchdown in the first half, keeping the game close, but Williams also threw three touchdown passes to engineer a 31-28 outcome. Rodgers returned to action the following week against Buffalo but only completed 10 passes for a 117 yards in a 26-7 loss.

At 6-6 and in danger of finishing below .500 for the first time in Mike Tomlin's 19-year tenure as their head coach, the Steelers turned it up down the stretch, twice defeating Baltimore in that 4-1 finish. In Week 14 in Baltimore, Rodgers ran for one score and threw another for a 27-19 Steeler win; in the final game of the NFL's regular season, on a Sunday night in Pittsburgh, Rodgers only threw one touchdown pass to three for Jackson, but it was the game-winner to Calvin Austin with 55 seconds left in a 26-24 final. Those two head-to-head wins over Baltimore were the difference in the division title hunt as the Ravens finished two games back in the standings.

The Steelers' postseason journey was brief. Playing host to Houston in the opening round, Pittsburgh was outgained 408 total yards to 175 in a lopsided 30-6 outcome. Rodgers' last pass of the season was picked off by Houston's Calen Bullock and returned 50 yards for a touchdown.

One day after the Steelers' playoff exit, Tomlin announced that he was stepping down as the team's head coach.

Rodgers tossed 24 touchdown passes against seven interceptions in the regular season, but he averaged a career-low 6.8 air yards per pass attempt and the Steelers ranked 22nd in passing yards per game and 23rd in yards per pass play. Wide receiver DK Metcalf, obtained in a trade before the season, caught 59 passes for 850 yards and six scores, but it was running back Kenneth Gainwell who led the team with 73 receptions. Both Gainwell and Jaylen Warren topped 1,000 yards from scrimmage and the former was named team MVP.

Pittsburgh's defense finished 26th in yards allowed and 16th in points allowed despite ranking in the top 12 in both interception and sack percentage. Watt missed three games and failed to hit double digits in sacks for just the second time in the last eight seasons, but Alex Highsmith (9.5 sacks) and Nick Herbig (7.5) still filled out a robust edge rush presence. The Steelers racked up 15 interceptions by 11 different players, though no single defender had more than two.

2026 Arrivals

Pittsburgh had to start its offseason with a coaching search after Tomlin's decision to depart, and exactly two weeks later Mike McCarthy was announced as just the organization's fourth head coach in the last 57 years. McCarthy took a year off after being dismissed by the Cowboys at the end of the 2024 campaign but brings 18 years of head coaching experience to his new post, plus 12 different postseason appearances. He brought in former Vikings Pass Game Coordinator Brian Angelichio as his offensive coordinator and former Raiders Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham to run the defense.

Rodgers is back for a second season in Pittsburgh and what he says will be his last go-around in the NFL. That's not actually a 2026 addition, but there was plenty of mystery if he would return until he finally signed a new deal on May 18. He will find a lot of new faces on the offense around him, including wide receivers Michael Pittman Jr., Germie Bernard and Kaden Wetjen. Pittsburgh got Pittman from the Colts in a draft pick swap that only cost them 16 spots, from number 214 to 230, but they subsequently gave him a three-year $59 million extension. Bernard and Wetjen were second and fourth-round draft picks out of Alabama and Iowa, respectively. Bernard is likely to start in the slot with Metcalf and Pittman occupying the outside spots, while Wetjen will probably make more of an immediate mark on the return game.

Gainwell left for the Buccaneers but Pittsburgh replaced him in the backfield by signing Carolina's Rico Dowdle to a two-year deal. Dowdle had nearly 1,400 yards from scrimmage for the Panthers last season and prior to that played under McCarthy in Dallas. Pittsburgh also drafted Indiana's Riley Nowakowski in the fifth round, making him the only fullback on the roster after the departure of Connor Heyward. Seventh-round running back Elie Heidenreich was a prolific pass-catcher at Navy and might have a shot at replacing some of that type of production that Gainwell took to Tampa.

The Steelers could be making some changes to their offensive line after drafting Arizona State tackle Max Iheanachor 21st overall and Iowa guard Gennings Dunker in the third round. Left tackle Broderick Jones has struggled since being selecting in the first round of the 2023 draft and is also not a sure thing to start the season on time due to a neck injury. The Steelers may choose to move 2024 first-round pick Troy Fautanu from right tackle to the left side, with Iheanachor then battling Dylan Cook for the right tackle job. Dunker could push 2023 seventh-round pick Spencer Anderson for one of the guard spots after Isaac Seumalo left for Arizona. Pittsburgh also signed former Cowboy Brock Hoffman, who started 16 games over the past three sons, for depth at the center spot.

The Steelers' draft also delivered a potential quarterback to take over for Rodgers next year, as they nabbed Penn State's Drew Allar in the third round. Allar has prototypical size for an NFL quarterback and a very strong arm but will need to improve his accuracy to develop into a starter. Earlier in June, Pittsburgh also added to its tight end room by signing Robert Tonyan after he spent last year in Kansas City.

The offseason moves on the defensive side of the ball were not extensive but could significantly change the lineup in the secondary. Pittsburgh gave former Buccaneer cornerback Jamel Dean, who is coming off one of his best seasons as a pro, a three-year, $37 million deal to join Joey Porter Jr. as the starting outside cornerbacks. They also added competition and depth for those spots by using a third-round pick on Georgia corner Daylen Everette. Former Bears safety Jaquan Brisker also figures to start after inking a one-year, $5.5 million pact. The other defensive addition of note was former Titans defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day, who got a two-year deal, though the team most recently added former Buffalo safety Darnell Savage in June.

Pittsburgh will have a new punter in 2026 to replace Corliss Waitman, and the competition currently looks like veteran Cameron Johnston against rookie Aidan Laros. Johnston has exactly 100 games of NFL regular-season experience, though only five in the last two years; Kentucky's Laros originally signed with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent this spring before being waived and claimed by the Steelers.

2026 Departures

The 2026 departures began, as noted above, a day after the 2025 season ended with Tomlin's decision to end his impressive 19-year run as Pittsburgh's head coach. Tomlin went 193-114-2 with the Steelers and led them to their most recent Super Bowl title at the end of the 2008 campaign, as well as a second Super Bowl appearance in 2010.

As was also mentioned in the above section, Gainwell, Seumalo and Heyward all left the Steelers' offense for new NFL challenges. Gainwell had 1,023 yards from scrimmage last season and, again, led the team with 73 receptions. Seumalo started 61 games for Pittsburgh over the past four seasons and went to the Pro Bowl in 2024. Heyward, the brother of long-time Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, played four seasons in Pittsburgh, primarily as a blocker.

The Steelers had three receivers from last year's squad sign elsewhere this spring, though none were high-volume contributors in 2025. Calvin Austin moved on to the Giants after catching 31passes last year; Marquez Valdes-Scantling had 10 catches in five games for Pittsburgh and is now in Dallas; and Scotty Miller, who found work in Chicago, hauled in nine passes in 13games. Pittsburgh also released tight end Jonnu Smith one year after getting him a trade with Miami. Smith caught 38 passes for 222 yards last year and has yet to sign with another team.

Just as the additions on defense were light this offseason, so were the departures, and they were also focused in the secondary. Cornerback James Pierre inked a two-year deal in Minnesota after playing about 38% of the defensive snaps last year and breaking up 11 passes. Safety Chuck Clark went to Detroit after starting five games in Pittsburgh in 2025. Safeties Miles Killebrew (Tampa Bay) and Kyle Dugger (Cincinnati) also signed elsewhere; Killebrew is best known as a special teams ace while Dugger was only in Pittsburgh for nine games after a midseason trade from New England.

Pressing Questions

Will the passing game be more robust in Aaron Rodgers' final season?

Rodgers is a sure-fire first-ballot Hall of Famer and at his career peak was perhaps the most talented passer in league history. He added 3,322 passing yards and 24 touchdown tosses to his career totals last year in Pittsburgh but the Steelers' passing attack lacked downfield punch. Rodgers focused on getting the ball out of his hands quickly, with an average time to throw of 2.61 seconds that was the quickest for any NFL quarterback since 2016, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. Pittsburgh's average of 5.9 air yards per attempt was the lowest in the NFL, while the team's percentage of passing yards that were gained after the catch (69.6%) was by far the highest in the league.

The Steelers have made efforts to create a more explosive attack. The trade for Metcalf in 2025 brought in a receiver known for his ability to make big plays downfield. Pittman, acquired this spring, has profiled as more of a possession receiver, averaging 10.8 yards per catch in his career, but is a big-bodied target who can help his quarterback by winning contested catches. Bernardhas good size as well and is a proficient route-runner who should help Rodgers work the middle of the field. In addition, if the potential changes on the offensive line lead to an upgrade in pass protection, Rodgers may be able to hold the ball longer to let plays develop.

Will the Steelers break their playoff win drought?

Pittsburgh has made the playoffs in five of the last six seasons but lost in the Wild Card round each time. Since reaching the conference championship game following the 2016 season, the Steelers have been defeated in seven straight postseason contests. The frustration of a string of nine or 10-win seasons followed by January disappointment may have contributed to Tomlin's surprising departure. While some NFL teams would be thrilled to be perennial playoff contenders, the expectations in Pittsburgh are surely aimed higher. McCarthy has a proven track record and was able to lead Green Bay to four conference championship games and one Super Bowl victory. If he can help Pittsburgh get past its current plateau, he will be a very popular man in the Steel City.