The NFL offseason has just gotten underway, but Pro Football Network is already using its playoff predictor model to make projections for the 2025 season, and they aren't pretty for the Pittsburgh Steelers .
Using 10,000 runs of the PFN Playoff Predictor simulations, the PFN crew projected the entire 2025 season for each team, and came up with a bleak outcome for the Steelers.
The PFN model currently projects that the Steelers will finish the 2025 season 6-11, securing Mike Tomlin's first losing season as head coach and missing the playoffs for the first time since 2022. With significant roster uncertainty at the quarterback position , it's fair to say that's a prediction that lacks much confidence at this point.
"The Pittsburgh Steelers are another tough team to project because we do not know who their quarterback will be," PFN wrote. "Both Russell Wilson and [Justin] Fields are free agents, and while someone like [Aaron] Rodgers could be on the card, that is far from certain. Pittsburgh also enters 2025 with some questionable numbers from 2024, with a 25th-ranked offense and a 24th-ranked offensive line."
Every NFL roster will go through significant changes as the offseason progresses, but it's an interesting metric to use as a starting point, in order to gauge the progress as general manager Omar Khan builds the roster.
Early Super Bowl LX odds are another such metric that can be tracked. The Steelers are currently +6,500 to win the Super Bowl at the end of the 2025 season, according to FanDuel Sportsbook . Those odds are 22nd from the top of the board.
The PFN model currently gives the Steelers an 8.2% chance of making the playoffs, a 1.4% chance of making the divisional round and a 0.1% chance of making the Super Bowl.
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin before a game against the Baltimore Ravens on Dec. 21, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin, who is entering his 18th season at the helm of the franchise, has never had a losing season . The last time the Steelers finished under .500 was in 2003, when they went 6-10.
PFN projects the Baltimore Ravens will win the AFC North at 12-5, with the Cincinnati Bengals rebounding for a 10-7 season and the Cleveland Browns continuing to struggle at 4-12.
The Buffalo Bills are projected to tie the Ravens for the top seed in the AFC at 12-5, followed by the Kansas City Chiefs at 11-6. The Denver Broncos , Houston Texans and Miami Dolphins are all currently slated to go 9-8 and make the playoffs, with the Los Angeles Chargers the first team off the bubble.
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