Pittsburgh Steelers: Can Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy Make Magic Again?
First training camp practice: Wednesday, St. Vincent's College, Latrobe, Pa.
Key additions: WR Michael Pittman Jr., CB Jamel Dean, WR Germie Bernard
Key departures: G Isaac Seumalo, RB Kenneth Gainwell, WR Calvin Austin III
Outlook: The Steelers captured the AFC North in 2025 but haven't won a playoff game since 2016. Fifteen seasons after they won a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers, Head Coach Mike McCarthy and quarterback Aaron Rodgers will try to rekindle the magic in Pittsburgh.
Rodgers is 42 years old and says this will be his last season. McCarthy, a Pittsburgh native, is taking over for Mike Tomlin, who was the NFL's longest-tenured head coach after 19 seasons with the Steelers.
After averaging a career-low 5.8 yards per passing attempt last season, Rodgers hopes the addition of Pittman and McCarthy's offense will allow Pittsburgh to attack downfield more. The Steelers will spend much of training camp trying to establish a rhythm between Rodgers and the team's playmakers. If the Steelers have a more explosive offense, it could help them not only return to the playoffs, but and have success once they get there.
Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger believes the Rodgers-McCarthy combo is still formidable.
"It looks like the classic Aaron Rodgers–Mike McCarthy Packers offense: under center, shotgun, play‑action, move the pocket," Roethlisberger said on his “Footbahlin With Ben Roethlisberger” podcast. "Even if Rodgers' mobility isn't what it was in his 20s and 30s, you can still see exactly what they're trying to do."
Cincinnati Bengals: Can Their Revamped Defense Gel Quickly?
First training camp practice: Wednesday, Kettering Health Practice Fields, Cincinnati
Key additions: DT Dexter Lawrence, DT Jonathan Allen, OLB Boye Mafe
Key departures: OLB Trey Hendrickson, ILB Logan Wilson, CB Cam Taylor-Britt, S Geno Stone
Outlook: After missing the playoffs for a third straight season, the Bengals traded for Lawrence and revamped their defense. Cincinnati's offense is one of the league's most potent, led by quarterback Joe Burrow and receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. But only two teams gave up more points than Cincinnati last season (28.9 points per game). One key to the Bengals' training camp will be to get their defense to gel under second-year coordinator Al Golden.
Mofe, who won a Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks before leaving to join the Bengals in free agency, likes what he sees from the defense heading into camp.
During an appearance on The Insiders on NFL Network, Mafe confirmed the general feeling that players are adapting to Golden's vision of the defense. Mafe compared the situation to Mike Macdonald arriving as head coach in Seattle.
"Guys are learning a new defense, there's gonna be a learning curve," Mafe said on NFL Network via Landon Belotte of SI.com. "Coming into spring, I'm seeing that guys are comfortable with the defense. I'm seeing that guys are understanding everything.
"They're seeing the vision, they're seeing how he wants to run the defense, and what he wants it to look like. It's starting to become his vision of what the defense should look like."
Cleveland Browns: Who Will Todd Monken Decide on as His Starting Quarterback?
First training camp practice: Wednesday, CrossCountry Mortgage Campus, Berea, Ohio
Key additions: DE Jared Verse, G Zion Johnson, G/C Elgton Jenkins, ILB Quincy Williams
Key departures: DE Myles Garrett, G Wyatt Teller, TE David Njoku
Outlook: The trade that sent Defensive Player of the Year Garrett from Cleveland to the Los Angeles Rams was the blockbuster deal of the summer.
If that wasn't enough change, former Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken enters his first season as the Browns' head coach. He needs to decide between Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson as the starting quarterback and would like to have that settled well before Week 1.
Monken said he likes things that he's seen from both quarterbacks, and that Sanders has grown since his rookie season.
"I think he's being more decisive," Monken said in June, via Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN.com. "Now, it's easy to say we're not in pads. It just feels like he's making quicker decisions. The ball's coming out of his hands, which he's going to have to do."
The competition between Sanders and Watson will be one of the league's most-discussed topics until Monken makes his choice.
