Let the countdown continue!

The 2024 NFL Draft, rookie minicamps, and the release of the 2024 NFL schedule are now all behind us. With Phase III of OTAs starting this week, let’s check back in on the official count down of the number of days to key offseason dates.

1 day: Phase III of OTAs

Phase III of the Steelers OTAs is getting started on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. After the 10 dates for OTAs, the Steelers are scheduled to have three days of mandatory minicamp starting on Tuesday, June 11. The full schedule can be seen below courtesy of Steelers.com:

The following is the full OTAs schedule:
Tuesday, May 21 – OTA #1
Wednesday, May 22 – OTA #2
Thursday, May 23 – OTA #3
Tuesday, May 28 – OTA #4
Wednesday, May 29 – OTA #5
Thursday, May 30 – OTA #6
Monday, June 3 – OTA #7
Tuesday, June 4 – OTA #8
Wednesday, June 5 – OTA #9
Thursday, June 6 – OTA #10

Steelers Mandatory Minicamp
Tuesday, June 11– Day 1
Wednesday, June 12 – Day 2
Thursday, June 13 – Day 3

56 days: Franchise Tag Signing

Any player who was designated with a franchise tag must have a signed contract by 4 PM on July 15. After this date, the player can only play under the tag for the season. The Steelers did not use the franchise tag in 2024.

63 days: Transition Tag Signing

Any player who is designated with the transition tag must have a signed contract from another club by 4 PM on July 22. After this date, only the team who issued the tag has exclusive negotiating rights. The Steelers did not use the transition tag in 2024.

~65 days: Training Camp

Although the Steelers have not officially announced the start date of training camp, they generally report the middle of the final week of July. With the Steelers not playing in the Hall of Fame Game, the fist day of training camp will not be earlier than the rest of the NFL and looks to be about July 24, 2024.

73 days: Hall of Fame Game

This date won’t be as significant to the Steelers for 2024 as they are not scheduled to play in the Hall of Fame Game, which kicks off the weekend on Thursday August 1, 2024. The Hall of Fame activities will be over the course of the weekend from the game Thursday through Sunday with the 2024 enshrinement scheduled for Saturday. The game on Thursday will be between the Houston Texans and Chicago Bears.

81 days: The Steelers First Preseason Game

The Steelers are scheduled to have their first preseason game on Friday, August 9, 2024 at Acrisure Stadium. The Steelers will be facing the Houston Texans at 7 PM, but the details of if the game can be seen on television outside of Pittsburgh have not been announced at this time.

94-97 days: The Steelers Last Preseason Game

After hosting preseason games in back-to-back weeks, the Steelers third preseason game has an opponent and a location, but a day and time have not been announced. All that is known at this time is the Steelers will be traveling to Detroit to face the Lions.

99 days: 53-man Rosters

The last three seasons where the NFL had a 17-game schedule, the final roster cut down date was the Tuesday following the final preseason games. If they stick to the same schedule this year, the date would be Tuesday, August 27, 2024. The exact date has not been officially announced by the NFL, but should be soon.

108 days: NFL Kickoff Game

Thursday, September 5, 2024 will be the first game of the NFL season as the Baltimore Ravens travel to defending Super Bow Champion Kansas City Chiefs.

111 days: Steelers opening game

The Steelers start their regular-season campaign by traveling to Atlanta to face the Falcons. The game is scheduled for 1 PM on FOX.

125 days: Steelers home opener

The Steelers play their first regular-season home game in Week 3 when they host the Los Angeles Chargers. The game is scheduled for 1 PM on CBS.

229-230 days: Steelers final regular season game

The Steelers last game of the 2024 season will be at Acrisure Stadium against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 18. Whether the game will be on Saturday or Sunday, as well as the kickoff time, will not be announced until Week 17.

265 days: Super Bowl LIX

Super Bowl LIX is scheduled to be played on February 9, 2025 at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.