Last year, we had the Icy Hot Bowl for the matchup between Aaron Rodgers and Joe Flacco. The Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week 1 matchup with the Atlanta Falcons might need a similar billing, as both teams enter the 2026 season tied for the oldest team in the NFL. In PhillyVoice’s Jimmy Kempski’s annual rankings of the oldest teams in the league following roster cutdowns, the Steelers and Falcons enter the season with an average age of 27.1, edging out the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers (all at 26.9) for the NFL’s oldest rosters.
Entering last season, the Steelers were the league’s second-oldest team. This year, they take the “crown” as the oldest. It shouldn’t come as a surprise for a team that has 12 players who are 30 or older, headlined by the 42-year-old Rodgers. That’s 22.6% of their active roster, and if you lower the threshold to 28 or older, the Steelers have 21 players who fit the bill, or 39.6% of their active roster.
After Rodgers, 37-year-old Cam Heyward, 35-year-old Chris Boswell and 34-year-old Cam Johnston are the team’s oldest players. Both Boswell and Johnston are special teamers, and specialists usually have a longer career span in the NFL if they prove themselves, as both Boswell and Johnston have.
As the Steelers have shown in recent years, having an older roster doesn’t mean the team is going to be bad. They’ve made the playoffs with rosters that have trended older, and the team still has plenty of youth at key positions. Pittsburgh’s projected starting offensive line, for example, is one of the youngest in the league. From left to right, the Steelers will trot out Troy Fautanu (25), Mason McCormick (26), Zach Frazier (25), Spencer Anderson (26) and either Dylan Cook (28) or Max Iheanachor (22).
Omar Khan’s drafts since taking over as GM have brought in plenty of contributors, so while the Steelers do have the oldest roster, they’re still set up well for the future. Of course, figuring out the future of the quarterback position is essential, and the Steelers have rookie 22-year-old Drew Allar and 24-year-old Will Howard as potential options for a post-Rodgers world.
The positive of an older roster is plenty of veteran leadership, and that’s especially important with a new coaching staff in place. The Steelers are also ever so slightly younger than they were last year, with an average age of 27.28 last year going down to 27.1 this year. While there may be a stigma around being an “old” team, the Steelers are set up well with a mix of veterans, younger players and guys just entering their prime. The age of the roster shouldn’t be something that holds them back this year.
