Steelers President Art Rooney II says 'we've had enough' of losing in NFL playoffs

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been good enough in recent years to make the NFL playoffs. However, once they do get there, they’ve also consistently lost. It’s a problem that team President Art Rooney II is looking to address.

Recently, Rooney explained that he’s had enough of losing in the playoffs and emphasized that there’s urgency in fixing the problem.

“We’ve had enough of this,” Art Rooney II said. “It’s time to get some wins. It’s time to take these next steps. There’s some urgency there, for sure.”

2003 was the last season the Steelers had a losing season. However, things have gotten tougher in recent years in a highly competitive AFC North that sent three teams to the playoffs for the 2023-24 NFL season and the last time Pittsburgh actually won the division was 2020. Worse than that for Pittsburgh, the team’s last playoff win came during the 2016 game, before the team fell to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.

This has come amid questions about head coach Mike Tomlin and how much longer he will be coaching in Pittsburgh. He has been with the team since 2007 and won a Super Bowl in his second season coaching the team. However, now he only has one more year left on his contract.

Pittsburgh is a franchise that has been owned by the Rooney family since 1933 when the NFL granted a request to expand the league. On top of that, since 1969, the Steelers have only had three head coaches, Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Mike Tomlin. Now, between Tomlin’s contract situation and the comments made by Art Rooney II, it looks like change could be on the horizon for the NFL’s most stable franchise.

Najee Harris credits Mike Tomlin with ‘carrying’ Steelers to 10 wins

The 2023 Steelers team dealt with plenty of issues, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Still, they won 10 games, which running back Najee Harris credited head coach Mike Tomlin with carrying the team to.

“To get 10 wins is good for the team, but also Mike T,” Harris said. “Just a good coach. He’s been carrying us along this whole year. I think that it really showed how resilient and how calm he always is, even when stuff looks bad. A lot of negative stuff being said, and he always just stays the same person. So, happy for Mike T and the team.”