Even if the Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t recently come close to the pinnacle of on-field success, the franchise remains a gold standard in how a team should be run. Former longtime Green Bay Packers executive and NFL agent Andrew Brandt included Pittsburgh as the model for the rest of the sports world to follow.
“The Eagles and Patriots and Steelers and so many teams that make it about the product,” Brandt said during a Tuesday appearance on The Dan Patrick Show. “And not these other things.”
Patrick’s question referenced which teams are best run financially and not necessarily putting out the best product every single season.
Brandt also gave his former team, the Packers, plenty of credit, and noted that their lack of a true ownership helps keep the focus on football. Green Bay and Pittsburgh are similar franchises. Small-market, legacy teams with a rich history of players, coaches, and overall success. The Packers have 13 championships, including four Super Bowls, while the Steelers have six Lombardi Trophies. Both franchises have scores of Hall of Famers and all-time greats, old and new.
It’s only appropriate that Pittsburgh’s starting quarterback and head coach, Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy, have worked for both.
“These are family business that are now worth $10 billion,” Brandt said, while noting those franchises would never sell ownership even if it was immensely profitable.
We recently explored how much Pittsburgh could fetch in a hypothetical sale. Potentially 11 digits. Despite that, the Steelers are doubtful to ever even considering selling a majority stake in the franchise, one that has been held by the Rooney family since its 1933 founding.
Now, the Steelers have to look as impressive on the field. With no losing seasons since 2003, Pittsburgh has been a model of stability and competitiveness. Expectations are higher than that, and McCarthy will be feeling the pressure immediately.
