Steelers Nearing Organizational Nightmare As Mike McCarthy Faces Serious Pressure

The Pittsburgh Steelers have been going through a rough stretch as of late, although plenty of other fan bases around the NFL would gladly switch places with Pittsburgh. The Steelers have remained competitive in the regular season, but it has been hard for the franchise to find an ounce of success in the postseason for almost a decade. The Steelers have not advanced in the playoffs since the 2016 season, and every appearance since then has been simply pathetic. Most recently, Pittsburgh lost to the Houston Texans by a score of 30-6 in the Wild Card Round at the end of the 2025 season.

The fan base in Pittsburgh has been begging for major change for quite some time now, and that change finally happened a day after the 2025 season ended for the Steelers. Former head coach Mike Tomlin stepped down from his role on his own accord, and the organization then went out and hired Mike McCarthy to take his spot. This is clearly a major change, and the expectations have not switched up as fans want to see this team win a playoff game. Former NFL general manager, Doug Whaley joined 93.7 The Fan on Wednesday, and he shared that the Steelers are at risk of their fan base eroding.

"With the changing of guards with Mike McCarthy, they haven't had success lately in the playoffs," Whaley said. "Now, it's a whole generation that doesn't remember those 70s Steelers, or even the Steelers of the 2000s. So that's starting to wane. So they're going to have to start winning in the postseason. Think about it. There's a whole generation of people that haven't seen a playoff win. You're gonna start bleeding away that fan base, and eroding from that foundation. The popularity is going to start eroding unless you start winning."

Many Steelers fans got the changes on the coaching staff the fan base was looking for, but not everyone was thrilled with the new hire of McCarthy. The franchise is under pressure to perform, as the glory days of the organization are getting further and further away. The organization is approaching a decade with no playoff success as mentioned, which is the longest drought for the franchise since the AFL-NFL merger.

Whaley pointed out that there are current fans of the Steelers who have never seen a playoff win, and that reality should be startling for the franchise after having so much success in the past. The fans have been quick to turn on the organization in recent years, and that is only going to continue unless things go better than expected. Pittsburgh has gotten booed off of its home field several times over the last few seasons, and that is only a taste of what is going to come if the lack of success continues.

To be clear, the Steelers remain competitive in the NFL, despite not having a franchise quarterback. There are franchises like the Cleveland Browns, New York Jets, Las Vegas Raiders, and Arizona Cardinals that are in much worse spots. However, even Cleveland has won a playoff game more recently than the Steelers.

Steelers Might Need A Weakened Fan Base To Pursue Legitimate Change

The Steelers are in a spot where the franchise should consider legitimately blowing the roster up and starting from scratch, aside from the younger players. Many believe a true rebuild is needed, but the organization continues to operate under a "win now" mentality, which is simply not attainable with the product that has been put on the field year in and year out. A less devoted fan base might be the wakeup call that the decision-makers need to realize and pursue that change. The upcoming 2026 season has the potential to be a true turning point for the franchise, it just depends which way things will go.

What do you think of Whaley's concerns about the Steelers? Follow us for more news!

#SteelerNation