Steelers Icon Ben Roethlisberger Exposed All The AFC North Rivals' Weaknesses

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off a miraculous AFC North title in 2025, where the team won off a missed Baltimore Ravens field goal with time expiring in Week 18. Pittsburgh had general success against the division last year. They beat the Ravens twice, which kept them in the divisional race, and split the season series with the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns. The Steelers' organization has been vocal about wanting to remain competitive in 2026, and being successful in divisional games is a recipe for just that.

The Steelers were able to host a playoff game this past season, a feat that fans had dreamed of throughout the 2025 campaign. While the Steelers lost in the Wild Card Round, the team proved that they could have success against divisional opponents during the regular season. Pittsburgh played well enough to stay in the game in Week 18 and got lucky with a missed field goal by Ravens' kicker Tyler Loop. 

The Black and Gold will look to repeat as division champs in the 2026 season and hopefully break their playoff win drought. The division is as close as ever this season, but many argue that the Ravens will have the edge. Steelers legendary quarterback Ben Roethlisberger spoke on a recent episode of the Deebo & Joe podcast and gave his take on how the division will shake out.

"I would've said Baltimore with Lamar Jackson and that, but I think their window is closing. Obviously, Cleveland isn't in the conversation. Cincinnati, I like what Joe [Burrow] does and their offense is really good, but they don't care about their defense or anything there," Roethlisberger said. "I would say Pittsburgh [would win the division]."

Last season, the Ravens' starting quarterback, Jackson, missed multiple games due to injury. He's healthy this year, and the team has added some pieces on defense, like Trey Hendrickson. However, Baltimore has lost a ton of talent in free agency this year. Multiple starters from both sides of the ball have found new homes, and the Ravens' depth will be tested this season. While they have multiple stars, their lack of quality players at other key positions could be a hindrance in trying to win the division title. 

The Ravens would likely be the biggest obstacle for Pittsburgh to repeat their division title, but the Bengals are another team that could be a surprise. They will have their star quarterback, Joe Burrow, fully healthy. The team has stars at receiver too, like Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and their offense has the firepower to compete with the league's top defenses. However, the organization has spent little capital on its defense in recent years, which has prevented the team from being as good as it could be. 

These two teams would give Pittsburgh the most problems, as Cleveland is undergoing a rebuild yet again. The Steelers will need to ensure that they win against their division rivals in order to remain competitive. The competition will prove difficult (as it does every year), but the Steelers' resiliency has proven true in rival matchups as of late. 

The Steelers Have A Road To Back-To-Back Division Titles

The Steelers have a long road ahead this offseason, and they have made strides to add to their roster and rectify weaknesses that prevented the team from winning a playoff game in 2025. The Black and Gold clearly lacked weapons last season, and they have added multiple players on that side of the ball so far. The Steelers are still awaiting a decision from their starting quarterback of last season, Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers would provide the team with a stable signal-caller and would give the Steelers the ability to build on their success last season, but with more quality pieces. 

Pittsburgh will have a solid chance at repeating, and its legendary franchise quarterback gave them a solid endorsement. The NFL Draft and Rodgers' decision will give a clear vision of where the roster is going and how the team will stack up to divisional competition. 

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