​From the NFL’s random department comes a fresh take from J.J. Jansen, the Carolina Panthers’ longtime long snapper and the NFL’s current longest-tenured active player. In a recent appearance on the NFL Daily podcast, Jansen shared his thoughts on the Pittsburgh Steelers, touching on former teammate Aaron Rodgers and Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy. While he expressed confidence that McCarthy and Rodgers could team up again in Pittsburgh, he did not project a particularly high ceiling for the Steelers in 2026.
“I just don’t know that the team’s all that interesting, especially when you consider that division’s also got the Bengals and the Ravens,” Jansen said. “I still feel like they are a 9-8 team. They’re going to beat some teams that they shouldn’t and they’re going to lose some games that they shouldn’t. I would certainly trust the ball in Aaron’s hand in the fourth quarter, but it’s just an uninteresting 9-8, 10-7, 7-10 kind of team for me.”
Now entering his 18th NFL season, Jansen remains the Panthers’ all-time leader in games played with 277 and holds the distinction of being the league’s longest-tenured active player. His path to the NFL began when he signed with the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2008, though he never appeared in a regular-season game for Green Bay. He eventually found his way to Carolina, and he was part of the organization during the early Aaron Rodgers–Mike McCarthy era. His comments echo a sentiment that has become familiar for Steelers observers in recent years: the team has hovered around the .500 mark, posting between nine and 10 wins in six of the last eight seasons, yet has not won a playoff game since the 2016 season, when Pittsburgh reached the AFC Championship Game before losing to the New England Patriots.
That period has reinforced Pittsburgh’s decision to hire McCarthy. The Steelers hoped that a fresh voice and a potential reunion with Rodgers could lift the franchise beyond a pattern of respectable regular seasons that end without meaningful postseason success. Whether McCarthy can truly alter that trajectory remains to be seen, especially with Rodgers seemingly nearing the final chapters of his Hall of Fame career. Only time will tell if this pairing can produce the breakthrough the organization has sought.
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