Pittsburgh is tuning out the Steelers — literally

There once was a saying in the Steel City: 'If you ain't a Pittsburgh Steelers' fan, you ain't (crap).' But these days, Steelers Nation is doing the unthinkable. It's tuning out the football team that was once the center of their lives. All this as the QB-loaded class of the AFC threatens to leave the pass-poor Steelers in the dust for a decade. Hear much more on the Steelers' sorry state in the podcast and column below. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

The NFL TV ratings are in, and they aren’t pretty for Pittsburgh.

As the Sports Business Journal reports, the Steelers bucked the trend that saw NFL TV ratings shoot up 10 percent overall.

In Pittsburgh, where the Steelers typically post local TV ratings well over a 40% audience share, ratings have crashed. This season, despite the Ben Roethlisberger farewell tour, the Steelers’ local TV ratings sank 10% to a 36.24 share. And if you look at in terms of the overall ratings rise for the rest of the league, the Steelers’ numbers are off an alarming 20%.

The Steelers are no longer must-see TV compared to the QB-loaded class of the AFC, including the Chiefs, Bills, even the Bengals.

The AFC East champion Buffalo Bills had the league’s highest local TV rating, with a 47.16 rating. They edged out last season’s local TV champ, the Kansas City Chiefs (45.28 rating), the Sports Business Journal writes.

What do those two teams have in common? You guessed it – great, young, star quarterbacks.

It’s not just TV eyeballs that are off in Pittsburgh. The Sports Business Journal had bad news for the Steelers when it comes to fans in the stands, as well.

The Steelers played to 88.4% of capacity at Heinz Field this season. Only Washington (78.5 %), Detroit (79.9%) and the New York Jets (86.9%) were worse, according to the report.

This means a significant number of fans who paid good money for Steelers’ season tickets are staying away. A bright red warning light should be flashing on the desk of owner Art Rooney II.

It’s past time the Steelers catch up on the arms race in the NFL. But can they?

Sitting home for the playoffs is making an already disgruntled Steelers Nation plenty more uncomfortable. It’s settling in among Steelers’ fans just how far away their favorite football team is from competing with the likes of the Bills, the Chiefs, even the Bengals.

It all comes down to quarterback play. Other AFC teams have it. The Steelers don’t.

Justin Herbert came within a near Raiders’ tie in Vegas of crashing this year’s playoff dance. When he finally does get his Chargers in, the sublime-passing Herbert could rip up that dance floor. Even Trevor Lawrence with the Jaguars likely has a better chance of clawing his way to contention quicker than what most expect to happen with the stalled Steelers.

We have much more on the sorry state of the Steelers and the team’s seemingly pathetic choices at the most important position in sports -- all in this sobering edition of your Steelers Update Podcast.

NOTE: New episodes of the Steelers Update are available every Wednesday afternoon on PennLive.com and wherever podcasts are found, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Podcasts.

Or simply click and listen right here, right now:

After bidding a misty-eyed adieu to Ben Roethlisberger after 18 seasons, the Steelers’ franchise seems resigned to passing on an expensive trade for a top veteran quarterback. Even though Vegas is laying odds that the Steelers are in the running for Aaron Rodgers, it’s not going to happen.

All the Steelers have left now is nostalgia:

Meanwhile, the class of the AFC has these guys behind center:

Enter Pitt’s Kenny Pickett, who will stay-put in Pittsburgh, right? Well, Kenny will be saying ‘I do,’ but perhaps not to the Steelers:

Despite the presence of hometown favorite Kenny Pickett of Pitt in the 2022 draft, the Steelers might not use their 20th selection on a QB. There are some sure-fire blue-chip tackles in the draft, compared to the seemingly lesser talent at QB this year.

That leaves free agency where a list of second-tier journeyman quarterbacks will be available. Yet, a change of venue to Pittsburgh isn’t likely to elevate any of this lot to the level of the AFC elite. Nowhere close, in fact.

Plenty of Pittsburgh pundits are predicting the Steelers are most likely to trot out Mason Rudolph as their 2022 starter. How uninspiring is that?

There’s no telling how far the franchise will fall when Mediocre Mason is your starting Steelers’ quarterback. Maybe he’ll be No. 1 in the program. But he’ll never be tops in Pittsburgh’s heart. Not even close.

No wonder this is the winter of discontent in the 412 area code. Pittsburgh’s prospects at quarterback are extinguishing the once furnace-hot passion for pro football that burned in the Steel City like an eternal flame.

But as bad as things are in the Steel City, don’t even think of rooting for those ‘Who Dey’ Bengals in the AFC Championship Game. ‘Cause here’s who ‘Dey’ are:

The harsh truth is the QB-loaded class teams of the AFC threaten to leave the Steelers in the dust for a decade to come. It’s a bitter place proud Steelers fans aren’t used to being.

This is why it’s so hard to watch.

And it’s why an increasing number of Steelers’ fans are doing the unthinkable. They’re tuning out the team that was once the center of their lives.

I never thought I’d see the day.

WANT MORE: New podcast episodes are available every Wednesday afternoon on PennLive or earlier to our podcast subscribers on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher and Google Podcasts. So sign up, Steelers’ fans.

John Luciew is an award-winning reporter for PennLive and a 25-year Steelers season ticket-holder. His column and podcast are presented from the obsessively over-informed perspective of an avid Steelers’ fan. Check out his latest Steelers podcast every Wednesday afternoon wherever podcasts are found.

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