'Steelers DNA' Was Found All Throughout The Big 10 Because Of 1 Key Factor

After the 2025 NFL Draft concluded, the Pittsburgh Steelers' leaders proudly proclaimed that they drafted many players that had "Steelers DNA." However, they also said that there was no agenda to specifically target players from the Big 10 conference, where they drafted players from with their first six picks. As a conference, the SEC had its worst season in a very long time in 2024, but that alone doesn't explain why Pittsburgh selected almost everyone from the same conference or why those players in particular had the "DNA" that the team's brass were looking for. 

Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette may have cracked the code on how the Big 10 was the primary source of this Steelers DNA.

"Still, there’s no doubt the Steelers favor rugged, weather-proof guys who mostly will stay in the midwest and mid-Atlantic region once they’re in the AFC North," Batko said.

The Steelers usually play in numerous bad-weather games every season, so what better is there to prepare for those than to get a bunch of players who are used to that? Will Howard and Jack Sawyer won the National Championship while playing for Ohio State, and now they will play in there twice a year versus the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns.

While Derrick Harmon and Carson Bruener did not play in many games located in middle part of the country, they still primarily played in the Pacific Northwest, which is known for being very rainy and cold. Bruener was a teammate of Troy Fautanu, who was drafted by Pittsburgh in the first round back in 2024. The Steelers have been looking into that conference for more than just 2025; that's where they find players with their DNA. 

The SEC still has plenty of great players, but most of them don't play in places where it gets very cold in November. The teams on the gulf shores may experience some rain, but the mere threat of snow is enough to cause panic all across the south. Southerners could be tough in the trenches and on the field still, but they are more built to withstand the heat that NFL teams in that same region typically deal with.

Steelers Have Had Some Issues With Weather

The Steelers need these weather-hardened players because they have lowkey been awful when dealing with precipitation. While rain and snow can cause problems for every team, it's especially damning when Pittsburgh struggles in these types of games against the likes of the Dallas Cowboys and the Arizona Cardinals. Those teams play in domes and in hot states, so they shouldn't be able to run the Steelers' show like they've done recently when dealing with rain. 

The last time the Steelers won a game with weather problems was Week 18 of 2023, when they barely beat the Baltimore Ravens' backups. Even then, Pittsburgh fumbled the ball six times in that game while losing two of them, so it's not like they played great. They just took advantage of a team that wasn't exactly trying hard to win.

It's insane to think that a northeastern team like the Steelers have a tendency to just shut down when weather conditions are not ideal, but that has been the case for at least two years now. The AFC always runs through teams that live in bad conditions, so Pittsburgh has to learn how to deal with games like that if they want any chance of winning a playoff game or two. They will never stand a chance against teams like the Ravens or the Buffalo Bills in this case.