Counting down the days to key 2021 dates for the Pittsburgh Steelers

It has now been four months since Super Bowl LV concluded the tumultuous 2020 NFL season. With just over three months remaining until the Steelers take the field in the regular season, it’s time to look at some of the key dates for the remainder of the offseason as well as through the entire 2021 season.

6 days: Mandatory Mini Camp

Even though the Pittsburgh Steelers are chugging through their third week of Organized Team Activities, next week marks mandatory mini camp from June 15 through the 18th. IOt will be the last time the Steelers are together as a team before training camp.

42 days: Training Camp

Although the Steelers have not officially announced the start date of training camp, the date they are permitted to begin has been set by the NFL. With the Steelers set to play in the Hall of Fame Game, the fist day of training camp will be earlier than the rest of the NFL who are set to begin on Tuesday, July 27, 2021. The Steelers, as well as the Dallas Cowboys, can start as early as July 21, 2021 while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who will face the Cowboys on the opening night of the NFL season, can start July 24, 2021.

57 days: Hall of Fame Game

This date will be significant to the Steelers for 2021 as they are scheduled to play the Dallas Cowboys after the cancellation of last year’s game. The Hall of Fame Game is set to kick off the weekend on Thursday August 5, 2021. The Hall of Fame activities will be over the course of the weekend from the game Thursday through Sunday, August 8, 2021 with the 2020 enshrinement scheduled for Saturday with the 2021 class being inducted on Sunday.

64 days: Week 1 Preseason Game

Even with the Steelers playing in the Hall of Fame Game, they are still scheduled to play on Thursday night during the first full week of preseason games in Philadelphia against the Eagles. All of the games for the first full week of the 2021 NFL preseason will fall between Thursday, August 12 and Sunday, August 15, 2021.

79 days: Last Preseason Game

The Pittsburgh Steelers are once again scheduled to finish up the preseason against the Carolina Panthers. Unlike recent years when the final preseason games were all on a Thursday, the Steelers will face off against the Panthers on Friday, August 27, 2021.

83 days: 53-man Rosters

By 4 PM on Tuesday, August 31, 2021, teams will have to make their final cuts in order to determine their 53-man rosters. Teams will only have 80 players heading up to this deadline as they will also be cutting five players on the Tuesday following the first week of preseason games as well as the Tuesday following the second week of preseason games. With teams essentially having a bye week as the final preseason game, there will be extra time for teams to scour the waiver wire and prepare for Week 1 with their 53 players they have chosen to begin the season.

92 days: NFL Kickoff Game

Thursday, September 9, 2021 will be the first game of the NFL season as the Super Bowl Champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers will host the Dallas Cowboys. Although this game doesn’t sound overly exciting to some Steelers fans as it is an NFC matchup, it is regular season football for the first time for the 2021 season.

95 days: Steelers 1st Regular Season Game

Sunday, September 12, 2021 at 1 PM the Pittsburgh Steelers will kick off in Buffalo against the Bills. If you need any more of an explanation as to why this date is important, I’m not even sure why you’ve made it this far into the list.

214 days: Week 18 Games

Sunday, January 9, 2022 will be the final games of the 2021 NFL regular season. While all 32 NFL teams are scheduled to play this day, the time of each kickoff will be determined based on various playoff scenarios.

249 days: Super Bowl LVI

Super Bowl LV is scheduled to be played on February 13, 2022 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.