After two seasons without making the playoffs, the Pittsburgh Steelers are healthy look to be firmly in the mix for a deep playoff run. In fact, I’d go so far as to say the Steelers are bonafide Super Bowl contenders. And here are four reasons why.

The Ben Roethlisberger effect

If you look at how close this team was to making the playoffs last season, you have to understand just how good this team will be with him in the lineup. Roethlisberger admitted he wasn’t healthy for the first game and a half before his elbow finally gave out and it showed. If he’s back to 100 percent for this season, no team can assume they will beat Pittsburgh.

The goal of any NFL offseason is to improve. You cannot stand pat in this league or you lose. For a team like the Pittsburgh Steelers, this means eyeing the teams at the top of the AFC and figuring out what must be done to keep pace.

Last season the Steelers defense was among one of the best in the NFL. But there have been some changes and we need to go unit by unit and see if this group is better or worse.

Defensive line

This one takes a little deduction and confidence for the future. Losing defensive tackle Javon Hargrave hurts. He was easily one of the most underrated players on the roster. Simply the addition of Chris Wormley and Carlos Davis to replace him wouldn’t be enough to say this group is better.

But the healthy return of Stephon Tuitt puts this group over the top. Tuitt missed 10 games with injury last season but when he’s 100 percent is as good as any 3-4 defensive end in the league. I’m not sure we can count on him making it through a full season but for now, this group is improved.

Better