(TNS) —The five-game losing streak to end the 2024 season and the manner in which the Steelers lost those games continues to shape GM Omar Khan’s offseason. Khan isn’t just tweaking his roster in an attempt get the Steelers back among the NFL’s powers. He’s putting a wrecking ball to it.

The latest move was shipping longtime safety and former three-time All-Pro Minkah Fitzpatrick to the Dolphins for defensive back Jalen Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith. After a fifth consecutive one-and-done in the playoffs, the Steelers will have nine new starters, many of them aging stars who, like Tomlin, are hunting a postseason run.

The Steelers, long a franchise that epitomized patient and methodical team-building, are taking a different course in 2025, collecting stars from other teams via trades and free agency. DK Metcalf was the first big acquisition, coming in a trade from the Seahawks. The Steelers then made him the team’s highest-paid player, signing him to a $132 million deal.

Aaron Rodgers followed after a months-long pursuit, hoping to rekindle his career at age 41 after two forgettable seasons with the Jets. After six months of changes since the 28-14 playoff loss in Baltimore, fans showing up to Saint Vincent College for training camp practices later this month will need a program to identify the players.

Almost half of the players who were in the starting lineup for the playoff game against the Ravens 170 days ago are no longer Steelers. Russell Wilson, George Pickens, Najee Harris, Van Jefferson and Dan Moore were either traded or allowed to walk in free agency. That’s half the offense.

Fitzpatrick, Donte Jackson, Elandon Roberts and Larry Ogunjobi are gone from the defense. With training camp 23 days away, the question that hovers over the final weeks of the offseason is whether the pieces Khan has assembled can be molded into a contender on the fly.

One thing is certain: No one can accuse Khan and the Steelers of standing pat after yet another disappointing postseason. The flurry of moves might be out of character for the Steelers, but Khan let it be known in February the Steelers were going to be aggressive.

“The way it ended was unacceptable,” Khan said at the NFL combine. “We know we have to be better. People expect us to be better, and we expect better. That can’t happen again. We’re working hard to fix that to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Embracing change

For years, the Steelers were accused of keeping their aging stars for too long. Sentiment, the critics said, was valued over performance. No one can accuse Khan of that after dealing Fitzpatrick, whose turnover production took a steep decline the past two seasons, and he was dealt away a few months short of his 29th birthday.

Another philosophical change has been the willingness to acquire aging players. For years, the only free agents the Steelers would sign were young players coming off their rookie contracts. Under Khan, they haven’t been afraid to take chances on players who are in their late 20s or early 30s. Ramsey will turn 31 and Smith 30 in the coming months.

Fitzpatrick had been a cornerstone on the defense along with T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward since 2019. After years of trying to build around that trio, the Steelers will now navigate a new path with Ramsey, who — like Fitzpatrick — has three All-Pro recognitions on his resume.

How Ramsey fits in the defense remains to be seen, but he can play all over the secondary and won’t be as easy to avoid. Fitzpatrick liked to line up as a deep safety and had been neutralized by opposing offensive coordinators because they could scheme away from him.

Maybe a change of scenery will make Fitzpatrick one of the league’s top playmakers again, and maybe Ramsey’s arrival will bring new versatility and a new edge to a defense in desperate need of positive change.

All-in with Arthur

Khan has the responsibility of acquiring players, but ultimately his job is finding players who can execute in the systems the coaches are employing. It is clear head coach Mike Tomlin remains confident in offensive coordinator Arthur Smith in spite of the way last season ended.

The Steelers failed to score more than 17 points in any of the final five games of the season, but Khan keeps adding players who previously played for Arthur Smith. Jonnu Smith spent five seasons with him in Tennessee and Atlanta and joins several other veterans who have histories with the Steelers’ offensive coordinator.

Jonnu Smith joins Cordarrelle Patterson and Scotty Miller as others who played for Arthur Smith when he was head coach of the Falcons. Last season, the Steelers had Van Jefferson and MyCole Pruitt on the roster.

None of them were big contributors to the offense, but the expectations are higher for Jonnu Smith, who had 88 catches for 884 yards and eight touchdowns last season with the Dolphins.

It’s not a perfect offensive roster by any means, but at the very least Arthur Smith has players who fit his system. Now the pressure is on to produce consistent results. Before the late-season slide, the Steelers had a top-10 offense. They resembled nothing close to that in December or January.

Arthur Smith has a new quarterback, a new No. 1 receiver, a new No. 1 running back — and in Jonnu Smith, a chess piece he can deploy all over the formation. The all-in mentality and confidence in Arthur Smith has to lead to some winning hands for the Steelers.