In the 27th of a 32-part series, we are featuring all National Football League teams with a prediction of where each team will finish within their division, key off-season acquisitions and their top fantasy stars. Here are the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Key Off-Season Acquisitions
The Steelers have six new notable players this season. They acquired three players via trade and three players via free agency.
The Steelers signed future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers of Chico, California to a one-year deal worth $13.65 million, cornerback Darius Slay Jr. of Brunswick, Georgia to a one-year deal worth $10 million, and linebacker Malik Harrison of Columbus, Ohio to a two-year deal worth $10 million. The Steelers also acquired tight end Jonnu Smith and defensive back Jalen Ramsey of Smyrna, Tennessee in a trade with the Miami Dolphins, and wide receiver DK Metcalf of Oxford, Mississippi in a trade with the Seattle Seahawks.
Rodgers is joining his third NFL team after 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers and two seasons with the New York Jets. This past season, Rodgers completed 368 passes in 584 attempts for 3897 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He also had 22 rushes for 107 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns.
Slay Jr. is joining his third NFL franchise as he was previously with the Detroit Lions from 2013 to 2019, and the Philadelphia Eagles from 2020 to 2024. A six-time Pro Bowler, Slay Jr. was honoured three straight years by the Lions (2017 to 2019), and three straight years by the Eagles (2021 to 2023). This past season with the Eagles, Slay Jr. won a Super Bowl. In the 2024 regular season, he had 49 combined tackles (39 solo tackles and 10 assisted tackles), three tackles for a loss, 13 pass deflections, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. The forced fumble came in a 34-28 Eagles win over the Green Bay Packers in Brazil on September 6, and the fumble recovery came in a 27-13 Eagles win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 15.
Harrison spent the last five seasons with the Baltimore Ravens. In 15 games, he had 54 combined tackles (32 assisted tackles and 22 solo tackles), three tackles for a loss, three quarterback hits and two sacks. The sacks came in a 41-10 Ravens win over the Denver Broncos on November 3, and in a 35-14 Ravens win over the New York Giants on December 15.
Ramsey is joining his fourth NFL franchise. He previously played four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2016 to 2019, four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams from 2019 to 2022, and the last two seasons with the Miami Dolphins. Ramsey was a seven-time Pro Bowler from 2017 to 2023, and won a Super Bowl with the Rams in 2022. In 2024, Ramsey had 60 combined tackles (39 solo tackles and 21 assisted tackles), six tackles for a loss, four quarterback hits, two interceptions for seven yards, 11 pass deflections and one sack. Ramsey’s sack came in a 34-15 Dolphins win over the New England Patriots on November 24.
Smith is joining his fifth NFL franchise. He was with the Tennessee Titans from 2017 to 2020, the New England Patriots from 2021 to 2022, the Atlanta Falcons in 2023, and the Dolphins in 2024. This past season, Smith was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time. In 17 games, he had 88 catches for 884 receiving yards and eight touchdowns for the Dolphins.
Metcalf, a two-time Pro Bowler in 2020 and 2023, has played the last six seasons with the Seahawks. This past season, Metcalf had 66 catches for 992 yards and five touchdowns.
Fantasy Stars
Smith is ranked fourth at tight end. Kicker Chris Boswell of Fort Worth, Texas is ranked second. Last year he led the NFL with 41 field goals made. Meanwhile, the Steelers defense are ranked fourth. They led the NFL with 14 fumble recoveries.
Projected Finish
The Steelers defense is the reason why they place in front of Cincinnati and in second place in the AFC North.
