The most recent time the Pittsburgh Steelers took the field for a game, they walked off it after one of the most disappointing losses of the Mike Tomlin era. The 45-42 divisional round playoff defeat at home to Jacksonville seems like ages ago. And it might as well be as compared to what the Steelers will put on the field Thursday for their 7 p.m. kickoff in Philadelphia against the Eagles.
Roughly half of the 90 players on the training camp roster weren’t with the team on the sidelines for that January postseason game — and when you factor in the many veterans who will be held out (or are, in effect, holding out) Thursday, the Steelers you see at Lincoln Financial Field will bear little resemblance to the ones you got to know at the end of last season.