For much of the 2025 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ coaching staff has been the target of criticism. Mike Tomlin has won a lot of games leading the Steelers, but with a frustrating end to seemingly every season over the last decade, this year seemed to be Pittsburgh’s best chance to finally have some postseason success. And at times, both the offense and defense have looked capable of doing so. The Steelers are 5-3 and atop the AFC North, after all.
However, it hasn’t been consistent as some would like. Even in some of the Steelers’ wins, their problems have been glaring. They got back on the right track last Sunday with their best win of the season against Indianapolis, but analyst Gregg Rosenthal still thinks the Steelers are at a coaching disadvantage against the Chargers.
“Because it’s [Justin] Herbert back there, they are a must-watch every week,” Rosenthal said Thursday on his NFL Daily podcast. “And with the weapons he has, you give them a chance in a game where I trust the Chargers’ coaching just a little bit more than I do the Steelers’. The Steelers, you never know what you’re gonna get.”
The Chargers are getting more than just a chance in this game, to be fair. While there should be plenty of Terrible Towels Sunday night at SoFi Stadium, the Chargers are still favorites. And not without reason. They’re riding a three-game win streak and sit second in the AFC West, just one game behind Denver.
A large part of that effort is their coaching staff. Jim Harbaugh is an excellent head coach with a long history of success. Steelers fans are familiar with Greg Roman, the former Ravens offensive coordinator who’s now in Los Angeles. And Jesse Minter is leading a defense that’s been solid against the pass and the run.
Offensively, Rosenthal thinks the Chargers have one distinct advantage against the Steelers.
“If Justin Herbert can play offensive line for himself, by just running around and making it happen, and he had to do it even against the Titans, then man, there are mismatches with Ladd [McConkey], with [Oronde] Gadsden, and with Quinton Johnston against this secondary,” Rosenthal said.
The Steelers’ defensive backs had plenty of bad moments this season. But they are coming off a much better week. Due to injuries, the scheme was much simpler last week, and Jalen Ramsey was moved to safety specifically. That worked against Indianapolis for the most part, and we could see similar this Sunday.
However, if there’s one area the Steelers are going to beat the Chargers, it’s with their defensive line. T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig and even Jack Sawyer all impressed last week. Now they face a team missing both its starting tackles for the year. It’s a mismatch that the Steelers need to exploit.
The Steelers have been hot and cold all season. We’ll see which version comes to play on Sunday.
