Recently I was thinking about my time writing about the Pittsburgh Steelers. Throughout my career doing so, I’ve essentially done it all.

Commentary, news, breaking stories, features and even took a stab at simple film room breakdowns.

The one thing I’ve never done is work on just a random thought type format.

I can’t speak for you, the reader, but I am always thinking about writing and the Steelers. Thinking about different aspects of the team and game. Thanks to reading Myron Cope’s biography I decided to put a unique spin on this type of feature.

Now, for the name of the article, anyone who is familiar with the Styx song “Renegade” should know where it came from. If not, this is where it came from…

The jig is up, the news is out
They finally found me
The renegade who had it made
Retrieved for a bounty
Nevermore to go astray
This’ll be the end today of the wanted man

The jig is up…time for some randomness.

The dates are set!

We knew it was coming, but we didn’t know the exact dates of the 2026 NFL Draft in Pittsburgh. Wonder no more, as the dates are now made official!

The 2026 #NFLDraft dates are set 🙌

📝: https://t.co/AFACCNjwKj pic.twitter.com/WhcgAEQfMH

— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) January 23, 2025

I can’t speak for the entirety of the SCN/FFSN family, but I will be in the Pittsburgh area for this event. I honestly don’t want to go to the actual draft. I have no desire seeing Roger Goodell hug players entering the league. But I would want nothing more than to have a place we at SCN/FFSN can have a watch party and experience the draft together.

Several podcasters on our network have met listeners/viewers at games, but when you are at a game you eventually have to go to your seat. I want to turn a watch party in a livestream where fans can not just watch, but interact with us. This is still a long way away, but I’m excited just thinking about it!

But was it really that kind of year?

Thursday it was announced T.J. Watt was named a finalist for Defensive Player of the Year. This from the NFL:

The finalists for AP Defensive Player of the Year presented by @TCL_USA! #NFLHonors pic.twitter.com/LCaNESupFR

— NFL (@NFL) January 23, 2025

If you are like me, you think back on Watt’s season and think, “Really? Was it that kind of year?” While Watt’s sack numbers may have dipped in 2024, it wasn’t as if he wasn’t a dynamic playmaker who impacted games. Just look at some of the numbers below:

For the fourth time in five years, #Steelers Linebacker TJ Watt is again a finalist for #NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

Watt = only player in the NFL that ranks among the top six in the League in strip sacks (t-1st), forced fumbles (1st), quarterback hits (6th) sacks (8th)

— Bob Pompeani (@KDPomp) January 23, 2025

In the sack department, there were at least two plays, both also would have been strip sacks, which were negated by penalties. So, maybe Watt did have an impact season to remember, just not one where he led the league in sacks like we are used to seeing. I’d be shocked if he won the award, especially after being snubbed so many times when he was actually worth of the honor.

Postseason Thoughts

Christopher Marlowe wrote in his 16th century play The Tragical Life of Doctor Faustus, “Misery loves company.”

Before you even think it, no, I didn’t know that off the top of my head. I used the good ol’ Google machine.

However, the statement is true, and remains true for me as a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. Whenever the Steelers season ends without a Lombardi trophy, I want nothing more than for the other AFC North teams and AFC rivals to lose as well. So, when the Baltimore Ravens lost in gut-wrenching style to the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, I smiled.

I smiled the most Grinch-y grin I could muster.

The Ravens lost in the playoffs, and all is right with the world. Misery loves company.

18-game Regular Season Coming

In the not-breaking news category, the NFL is on a fast track to an 18-game regular season, whether you like it or not, but it might be coming sooner than later. This per ProFootballTalk:

18 games could be coming sooner than expected. https://t.co/AnVPxfzSYZ

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) January 23, 2025

I have to be honest here, I’m all for the 18-game slate. Why? First, I hate the odd number of 17. I hate how teams can’t finish an even .500. Second, if the 18-game season equates in two bye weeks, especially those timed with games not on Saturday or Sunday, it will make the game/product even better. We all know it’s coming, so we might as well rip the band-aid off and just embrace it.

Changes via addition, not subtraction?

On Friday’s “Let’s Ride” podcast I thought about what I wanted to discuss. To be completely honest, I didn’t have an idea based on the fact I thought the Steelers would have done something at this point. And by something, I mean anything. It got me thinking about Mike Tomlin’s comments about change, and what we all expected.

What we all expected at this juncture of the season were coaches getting fired. Visible change before the start of the new league year when player acquisition can occur. What have we seen? Nothing.

The more I thought about it, the more I wondered if the change we are looking for is displaced. Change just means things will be different, but what if the change which is coming is addition, not subtraction. Adding staff to help, rather than adding more? I think I need to dive deeper into this topic in another article, but you can check out the podcast Friday for more!

Free Agency or the NFL Draft? Try BOTH!

With just four players cut, the Steelers could create upwards of $80 million dollars in cap space in 2025. If there was ever a time for the Steelers to abandon the “We’ll just get the second tier free agents” it would be now. The Steelers need impact players on both sides of the ball, and the best way to accomplish this is to get key players who are proven commodities. On top of that, the Steelers need to hit on their draft picks. The 2024 class was marred with injury, but the pieces are there for it to be a good, not great, draft class. The Steelers will need to hit home runs in both the draft and free agency if they want to compete in 2025.

College Football Playoffs

The college football playoffs just wrapped up with Ohio State beating Notre Dame Monday in the National Championship game. In all, I liked the 12-team format, but I think it needs tweaking for it to be done properly. Since the bowl season has been marred by the transfer portal, it would be wise to expand the playoffs from 12 to 16 teams. Give first round byes, but the teams who are coming off a bye should earn at least one home game, not a neutral site game. The only neutral site games, in my opinion, should be the semi-final and the finals. If companies want to attach their names to games in the earlier rounds, let them have it. The Fiesta Bowl being held in Happy Valley for a Penn State game. Sounds good to me, but I like the way this is trending. As for rules and regulations regarding the transfer portal, that’s an article for another time…

Playoff Picks

This weekend is Championship Weekend in the NFL. Time for my AFC and NFC Championship picks!!

Washington Commanders (+6) at Philadelphia Eagles

I think the Eagles win the game and advance to the Super Bowl, but I’ve seen the unflappable Jayden Daniels defy logic too many times to not take the Commanders getting the points. If you can get a 6.5 or 7 point spread, jump at it because I think this game will be closer than some are expecting. A lot will ride on Jalen Hurts ability to run the football after injuring his knee/leg in the Divisional Round win over the Los Angeles Rams. It should be a good game.

Buffalo Bills (+2) at Kansas City Chiefs

This is me picking with my heart, not necessarily my head. I would rather see anyone in the Super Bowl than the Chiefs again, so I’ll take the Bills getting points on the road. However, if I were to make a serious bet here, I’d take the UNDER of 48.5. I don’t see this being a high scoring affair, then again, I’ve been wrong before.

That does it…the jig is up, they’ve finally found me. This renegade is outta here…be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the offseason.