The Pittsburgh Steelers have some interesting expectations for the 2025 NFL season. After many fans were hopeful that the team would commit to a rebuild and begin preparing for the future, General Manager Omar Khan did the impossible. He orchestrated an impressive offseason that not only laid the foundation for long-term success, but also made the roster significantly better in the short-term.

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Steelers General Manager Omar Khan holds up a phone to his ear as he stands in the team's War Room during the 2025 NFL Draft.
Khan’s approach brought in experienced veterans, addressed major roster holes, and added young talent through the draft. While the Steelers have certainly set themselves up for the future, this team is built to win right now. The biggest question mark remains Aaron Rodgers. At 41 years old, his ability to stay healthy and perform at a high level will be the ultimate factor in how far this team can go.
On his podcast Footbahlin, Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger shared a surprising and bold take. He believes the 2025 season is 'Super Bowl or bust' for Pittsburgh. Citing the strength of the roster and the urgency created by Rodgers’ limited window, Roethlisberger’s comments have fired up Steeler Nation and added even more intensity to an already pressure-filled season.
"I anticipate big things this year..." Roethlisberger said on Tuesday's episode. "When Coach Tomlin built this team, there was no way that they're saying that .500, that's not even on the table right now. This team right now is built, what Coach Tomlin has built, is a Super Bowl or bust team, in my opinion."
Roethlisberger didn’t hold back, and while he didn’t want to add unfair pressure, he made one thing clear. In his eyes, this roster can win a Super Bowl in 2025.

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Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin and then-quarterback Ben Roethlisberger celebrate after winning the AFC Championship Game to move onto the Super Bowl.
The pressure is on for the Steelers to deliver, but at the very least, Mike Tomlin must win a playoff game this season. If he doesn’t, the fan base is likely to go crazy and continue their calling for his termination.
"I don't want to sit there and say that anything short of that is a failed season," Roethlisberger said. "Because that seems like that's unfair pressure, but it also feels like that's what they've built for. And so it's not about just getting to the playoffs. And it's not even just winning a playoff game. That's a step up and that's great, but that can't be what is the final goal of this team. It can't be that. This team is built right now to go to a Super Bowl and to win a Super Bowl. And so it needs to happen."
Tomlin has remarkably never had a losing season in his 18 years as the Steelers' head coach. That is an incredible accomplishment, especially in a league built for parity. However, even with that level of consistency, it is hard to ignore the glaring issue.
Tomlin has not won a playoff game in nearly a decade. That is a shocking reality for a franchise that is used to deep postseason runs and competing for Super Bowls. For many fans, that kind of drought is simply not acceptable.
Steelers Are 110% Capable Of Winning The Super Bowl In The 2025 NFL Season
Tomlin’s last playoff win came during the 2016 season, and that needs to change as soon as possible. That is part of the reason the Steelers went all in this offseason. They did not just make a few tweaks to the roster. They made bold and aggressive moves in an effort to break through. The addition of Rodgers and the focus on building a complete, veteran-ready team showed that Pittsburgh is tired of falling short when it matters most.

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Steelers' Ben Roethlisberger speaks about his former team on his podcast.
While every season can be viewed as Super Bowl or bust, hearing Roethlisberger say it out loud adds weight to that belief. He has no reason to sugarcoat anything, and if he believes the Steelers are capable of winning it all, fans have every reason to feel excited. The expectations are sky-high and the pressure is real.
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