Steelers Repeated The Same Exact Mistake They Made With Legendary QB Dan Marino

The Pittsburgh Steelers seem to be stuck in quarterback purgatory, and that's how it's been for a few years now. They had to completely overhaul that position after the 2023 season, and there is a realistic chance that they do that again this offseason. It's the most important position in the NFL, yet the Steelers seemingly don't know how to truly address the position. Quick, cheap fixes may help in the short-term, but it is much harder to find your franchise signal-caller when you don't go big-game hunting. 

While making an appearance on 93.7 The Fan, Mike Florio talked about the Steelers' failures to find someone to replace Ben Roethlisberger. He brought up the fact that this exact situation played out before, and it didn't work then either.

"Well, you had Ben Roethlisberger, and maybe you didn't plan the way you should have because Ben Roethlisberger was coming to the end. You could've had Lamar Jackson; you took Terrell Edmunds because you wanted to hold it together with Ben. You didn't want to have awkwardness. That's why they didn't take Dan Marino in 1983: they didn't want to have awkwardness with Terry Bradshaw, who played one more game after that."

The Steelers have been known as a team that prioritizes loyalty. Unfortunately, when you're in a cruel business like the NFL, that priority usually leads you nowhere. The Steelers have named five different starting quarterbacks at certain times since Roethlisberger retired, and there is the potential for even more in 2025. 

Kenny Pickett was drafted to be the future of the team, but incoming free agent acquisition Mitch Trubisky was handed the starting job on a silver platter. Both players were brought in after Roethlisberger announced his retirement as convenient, quick fixes. Neither panned out and both were told to leave the team after just two seasons. 

Meanwhile, Lamar Jackson has already won three playoff games and a pair of MVP Awards. He is also one of the top two options for that award again in the 2024 season. The Steelers passed on him to draft Terrell Edmunds, a safety that stuck around for five years, but has already regressed to practice squad level performances, especially after his second stint in Pittsburgh.

Back in 1983, the Steelers passed on drafting a quarterback with all 14 of their picks. They could have drafted Dan Marino in the first round. Despite never winning a Super Bowl, Marino still proved to be one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time with the Miami Dolphins. He won an MVP and was seen as a top five quarterback throughout the majority of his career.

Meanwhile, Terry Bradshaw was at the twilight of his career. As Florio mentioned, he only played one more game after that draft, as he suffered a major injury and retired afterwards. The Steelers had no answer at quarterback, and they struggled for over a decade. Quick fixes did not help most of the time, as they were what the Steelers are now: mediocre. 

Steelers Need To Learn From Other Teams

The Green Bay Packers have become known for drafting franchise quarterbacks once their current one starts to decline. It may anger their current passer at the time, but it's worth it when they win Super Bowls and are always in the mix with the rest of the NFC. Loyalty doesn't matter when Lombardi Trophies are the goal. 

The Baltimore Ravens drafted Jackson when they still had Joe Flacco under contract. The veteran wasn't happy about it, but the Ravens seem to have no regrets about it. Super Bowl success is still to be determined, but at least they made an actual attempt to find their future and not cling on to the past. Florio brought both of these examples up as well.

What do you think about the Steelers failing at finding their heir to their franchise quarterback again? Let us know in the comments.

#SteelerNation