The Pittsburgh Steelers are well-known for being a loyal and legendary organization. The Rooney family has does an incredible job for decades regarding establishing a reputation and culture. In recent years, some of that has been criticized because of the franchise's inability to perform in the playoffs. Another area in which the team has received some negative feedback is when it comes to facilities. Each offseason, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) takes an anonymous survey from players to help make their experiences better. Steelers Team President Art Rooney II has often been voted upon in an unfavorable manor, specifically in recent years.
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Steelers Team President Art Rooney II roams the sidelines as the team warms up and gets ready to compete in a 2022 preseason matchup at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA.
The Steelers ranked 28th out of 32 organizations in the 2025 version of the report card, which painted another unfortunate picture in the Steel City. When it came to ownership, Rooney was given a "D" grade. That certainly speaks volumes about how he is perceived by players. In 2024, Pittsburgh's owner was actually given an "F," so he technically improved in the most recent survey.
Now, it's almost certain that Rooney is behind an incoming lawsuit. The league has reportedly filed a grievance against the NFLPA, noting that the report cards are a violation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), per ESPN.
"The league claims the report cards, which poll players on various aspects of working conditions, violate a CBA clause that says NFL owners and the union must 'use reasonable efforts to curtail public comments by club personnel or players which express criticism of any club, its coach, or its operation and policy,' according to an August letter from the league's management council to NFLPA general counsel Tom DePaso, obtained by ESPN," Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr. wrote.
The journalists over at ESPN, Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr., made sure to call out specific owners in their recent piece. Several leaders throughout the NFL implied that the report cards violated the CBA, with Rooney being mentioned by name.
"At the NFL league meeting in March, New York Jets chairman Woody Johnson -- who along with Art Rooney of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Robert Kraft of the New England Patriots, Michael Bidwill of the Arizona Cardinals and David Tepper of the Carolina Panthers received ownership grades of D or worse -- called the survey 'totally bogus' and hinted that it violated the CBA."
There is almost no doubt that Rooney felt as if his reputation has taken a hit in recent seasons. The report cards have been used as a tool to help players when they are evaluating potential landing spots in free agency, but they could now go away depending on how the legal process goes. It's evident that certain owners are perturbed by the feedback that they have received of late.
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NFL commissioner Roger Goodell speaks to reporters at a Super Bowl LVI news conference outside SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, California..
It would be foolish to think that Rooney was not involved in this complaint. He has not faced favorable grades and already made public statements about how the annual process is not technically abiding by the agreement between the league and Players Association. A final note in the published piece from Wickersham and Van Natta Jr. proved further that Rooney could be partially behind the grievance.
"One owner told ESPN that 'the only owners who don't care for [the report cards] are the ones who get the subpar grades.""
Instead of taking legal action, it may be better for the underperforming owners to figure out why they aren't held in high regard, in the hopes that they can change their approaches to some things.
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Steelers Team President and Owner Art Rooney II stands on the field as Pittsburgh gets set to play a professional football game on the road.
Steelers Continue To Struggle With Shared Facility
While it still may be years away, all signs are pointing to the Steelers breaking up, if you will, with the University of Pittsburgh. The two entities share facilities and that has led to some serious criticism. Rooney has a reputation of being somewhat cheap, so fixing this kind of conflict would certainly be cause for investing in a new facility. Overall, it's clear that Rooney is taking it to heart that players don't label him as one of the league's best owners.
Do you think that Rooney needs to change how he is running the Steelers? Let us know in the comments below!
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