Count Mike Tannenbaum among those who isn't on board with the Steelers bringing back Ben Roethlisberger or JuJu Smith-Schuster.
But he drafted Mark Sanchez. So what does he know?
On ESPN Monday, the longtime league executive said the Steelers are his biggest free agent loser. "They brought back Ben Roethlisberger at 39 years old, he averages 6.2 yards per attempt," Tannenbaum explained. "They re-signed JuJu Smith-Schuster, who averages less than 9 yards per reception. They still have questions at center, left tackle and running back. I think this is a team that could very much wind up with one of the top five picks in next year's draft."
While it's debatable whether the Steelers should've gone with the full rebuild this offseason, given the pieces they're losing on defense, they were still an 12-4 team last season. Granted, they lost four of their last five contests, and were stomped by Cleveland in the playoffs, but it's a bit much to say they're going to be at the bottom of the league.
As the guys were saying on "The PM Team," Tannenbaum is one of Pittsburgh's biggest media detractors. Last summer, he proclaimed Roethlisberger was the worst quarterback in the AFC North.
To be one of the five worst teams in the league last season, the Steelers would've had to win five games or fewer. It seems unlikely their descent will be that abrupt.
Granted, celebrating one's status as simply a mediocre football team is the definition of a loser's lament. But Mike Tomlin has never suffered through a losing season. The Steelers will not turn into the Jets. If they wanted to do that, they would just hire Tannenbaum.
