I hadn’t really been thinking about the Pittsburgh Steelers all that much during Sunday’s Super Bowl until I saw a Häagen-Dazs ice cream commercial in the second half. It featured Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez and Ludacris from the “Fast & Furious” movies.

That reminded me of the Steelers because, much like the Black and Gold, “Fast & Furious” has been remaking the same movie over and over again for years, and we are all getting a little tired of the whole franchise.

Then, not long after the Philadelphia Eagles concluded their beatdown of the Kansas City Chiefs, all the dialogue started on social media and carried into the next morning and afternoon on Pittsburgh sports talk radio.

The crux of the debate was whether or not the Eagles’ victory is a tacit acknowledgment that the Steelers are at least doing things the right way by trying to win with a running game and defense as opposed to selling out for a quarterback and putting all their chips into one player at that position.

Frankly, I have an easier time suspending disbelief over how “Fast & Furious” films pull off some of their stunts and plot lines than I do making the leap that the Steelers are on the cusp of becoming the Eagles. But, OK , I’ll play along.

Yeah. Sure. It’s encouraging to see that the Eagles did what they did this year without one of the four truly elite quarterbacks in the NFL — Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow.

But if there is a next cut of QBs, Hurts is right there with (if not above) the likes of Justin Herbert and C.J. Stroud. He is certainly at the top of the NFC with Matthew Stafford, Jared Goff and Jayden Daniels.

Let’s avoid diminishing Hurts’ talents for the sake of creating our own warm, cozy narrative to make us feel better about the state of the middling Steelers. After all, Hurts is capable of much better quarterback play than anything the Steelers have gotten since Ben Roethlisberger blew out his elbow in 2019.

The Steelers had a great run game and defense in the mid-1990s. When they got at least a Pro Bowl season from quarterback Neil O’Donnell, they went to Super Bowl XXX. The Steelers run game and defense were great in 2001. They got Pro Bowl QB play from Kordell Stewart and hosted the AFC Championship game.

This isn’t exactly a new concept. We’ve seen this fish before.

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But there are two things to remember here. First of all, the Eagles beating the Chiefs in one game doesn’t mean that funneling things through a truly elite quarterback is the wrong way to go. If Mahomes didn’t exist, Allen, Burrow and Jackson may all have Super Bowl rings (or at least multiple appearances) by now.

Look at Daniels in Washington if you want to move beyond those four in the AFC. He threw for 3,568 yards and was the team’s top rusher at 891. The Commanders defense was 13th in the NFL. In one season, he turned around the direction of that organization.

The problem for the Steelers is the way they have been evaluating and procuring their quarterbacks in the wake of (and the preparation for) Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement.

They overrated Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett in the draft. They went cheap on Mitch Trubisky in free agency, and they made another team pay for their own starter this past year with Russell Wilson.

So, yes, finding an elite franchise quarterback is hard. Unfortunately, so is assembling a roster as perfect as Philadelphia’s.

Howie Roseman took over as Philly’s general manager in 2010. It took seven years to build the first Super Bowl winner there. Then it was rebuilt and tweaked via a coaching change and an eventual move to Hurts at QB in 2021.

The Steelers, by contrast, are never going to change their head coach. Out of pure stubbornness, comfort and allergy to change, they are simply going to try to win with Mike Tomlin, three middle-aged star players on defense, one volatile pass-catching threat, a good kicker, a decent tight end and not much else.

The point is they are every bit as far away from building a roster close to Philadelphia’s as they are finding the next Ben Roethlisberger.

Or even the next Jalen Hurts.

”Fast & Furious 11,” known as “Fast X: Part 2,” is supposedly coming out in April 2026.

By that point, my guess is “furious” will be a good way to describe Pittsburgh after enduring another sequel of: “No Playoff Wins: Part 9.”

Maybe Vin Diesel can deliver us some Häagen-Dazs to make us feel better at the NFL Draft when it is in town. At least he won’t slow down for no reason at the Fort Pitt Tunnel like everyone else seems to do.

Listen: Tim Benz and Mark Madden discuss the state of the Steelers in this week’s Madden Monday

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