Steelers Bitterly Roasted For Disastrous State Of Affairs That Includes Suggestion To Move On From 3 Key Players

The Pittsburgh Steelers are technically still alive for a playoff berth. If they win out and finish 10-7 in the wild and wooly AFC, they would likely find themselves as one of the three Wild Card teams. Based on their performance over the last three weeks, they have given up on the season and Mike Tomlin. The Steelers are much closer to the bottom of the NFL than the top. Teams go through down periods, even the Steelers.

Pittsburgh has had only seven losing seasons since 1972, and they have only picked in the top 10 of the NFL Draft four times since the Immaculate Reception. They have only had a top 10 pick once in the 21st century. They selected Plaxico Burress as the eighth pick in the 2000 NFL Draft. Pittsburgh does not rebuild. The myth that the Steelers have only been consistently posting winning seasons since Mike Tomlin was hired is the epitome of presentism by the national media.

On Thursday during The PM Team w/Poni & Mueller, Andrew Fillipponi boiled over about the current state of the Steelers. The team is poorly coached, and Art Rooney II doesn't seem to care. The players have mostly checked out, and it feels like the team, for the first time in decades, is just playing out the string. Fillipponi is disgusted and laid out a bold plan to rock the offense to its rotten core.

“I’m ready to just wash my hands,” Fillipponi said disgustedly. “There are three guys I do not want on this team next year by hook or by crook. [Diontae] Johnson, Najee [Harris], and [George] Pickens. I don’t want any of those guys near my team next season.”

Fillipponi and his partner Chris Mueller have been highly critical of Najee Harris since he was selected in the first round. Harris has not had much running room in Pittsburgh, but after three seasons and his inability to identify the proper runner lanes, it may be in both party's best interests to move on. Jaylen Warren is probably most effective as part of a tandem, but Harris should no longer be his partner. 

“Seriously," Fillipponi blurted. "He [Johnson] is on good behavior for two weeks and you are giving him a pat on the back. He’s gone two weeks without dancing after scoring a garbage touchdown or quitting on a play.”

Diontae Johnson is one of only four wide receivers since modern free agency to sign a second contract with the Steelers. He is by far the highest-paid player on offense, but has not produced at a high level since he signed his extension. Johnson went all of 2022 without scoring a touchdown. In 2023, he was openly criticized for quitting on a play after an apparent touchdown was disallowed against the Cincinnati Bengals. He followed that up by celebrating a meaningless touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals. 

Steelers Former Super Bowl Champion Exposes George Pickens' Comments As Completely Inappropriate

Johnson would still be under heavy media fire, but his partner in crime, George Pickens, handed his beer to his fellow wideout. Pickens has openly questioned the offensive scheme. He refused to block for Warren near the goal line against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 15. Pickens openly questioned the media's ability to cover the sport because some have not played it professionally. He then finished by contradicting his head coach's account of a private meeting that he says did not occur. 

"I don't think Minkah Fitzpatrick wants Johnson on the team. This dude is embarrassing the Steelers logo and everything it represents," Fillipponi concluded. "Najee is a fly by night guy who after a good game, he'll act like they are on the right track. When he's not involved in the game plan, he's nowhere to be found."

"I think that Minkah, at this point, would rather have Johnson on the team than Pickens," Mueller interjected. "But that's just me. I also do think you make a fair point. We are sitting here trying to give Diontae Johnson credit for a couple of weeks. What a low bar that is to clear."

Pickens was touted as the best playmaker in Pittsburgh, and for the first half of the season, when given the opportunity, he built on the reputation. The second-year player appears to be trying to get himself traded out of Pittsburgh. It is a complete organizational failure that his talent went to waste. 

Matt Canada, Eddie Faulkner, Mike Sullivan, and Tomlin compounded the mistake by allowing his anger to turn into tantrums. Ignored tantrums turned into apathy, and now the relationship does not seem salvageable under the current conditions. 

Screaming get off my lawn and parting with your two best wide receivers on the surface feels great, but it is not practical. There is an old adage in professional sports that is truer today than ever. You can't fire the players. The Steelers could hire the second coming of Vince Lombardi, but without playmakers, they still will not win games. Fillipponi is right that the team needs fresh blood, but the only practical solution is the coaching staff. 

Taking talented but troubled players and turning them around under new leadership is possible. Omar Khan might have been able to spin the straw of Chase Claypool into the gold of Joey Porter Jr., but other general managers are not stupid. Claypool was a malcontent in Pittsburgh that has been an abject failure for the Chicago Bears and Miami Dolphins. Who will be lining up for the next Steelers malcontented wide receiver? 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? Is Fillipponi right that the team should dump Harris, Johnson, and Pickens? Please comment below or on my Twitter/X: @thebubbasq. 

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