Aaron Rodgers took his time deciding whether he wanted to continue playing football after last season. While he considered retiring, he opted instead to sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rodgers has been a solid addition to their team, but with one game remaining, it remains to be seen if he will get another shot to play in the postseason. Nick Wright thinks that Rodgers should call it quits if the Steelers don’t beat the Baltimore Ravens Sunday night.
“I’m scarred by what happened against Cleveland,” Wright said recently on FS1’s First Things First. “That just seemed like a quarterback that was done. If they win and they make the playoffs, and you see that they have a home playoff game, it reopens.
“But if they go back-to-back win and you’re into the postseason games, and you lose to Cleveland, then you lose to Baltimore, dealing with their own injury at quarterback, then I think it’s time.”
Rodgers made a comment before this season started making it seem like he’d retire no matter what at the year’s end. However, he walked that back shortly after. His future beyond 2025 is still unclear, with Rodgers not committing to anything yet.
Could Rodgers return? That’s possible. While he’ll be a free agent, the Steelers seem happy with how he’s conducted himself. They’d likely have some interest in bringing him back.
There are plenty of other teams that might be interested in Rodgers, too. He’s not the same quarterback that he once was, but he still is a competent player. In the right situation, he could help a team make a postseason run. Perhaps the Minnesota Vikings would kick the tires on Rodgers. They were interested in him before.
However, wondering if Rodgers could come back might not be the right question to ask. Should he return to the NFL next year? That’s more complicated.
Rodgers is easily going to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame one day. He’s one of the best quarterbacks ever, and he has nothing left to prove. He was fine for the Steelers this year. Does he want to risk continuing to beat his body up? Worse, does he want to risk coming out and looking like a shell of his former self? Father Time is undefeated, and every player falls off eventually.
Losing to the Ravens this week might not push Rodgers into retirement, though. That might leave him still wanting to compete in the playoffs one final time. Getting into the postseason could at least give Rodgers some closure on his career. He needs to stave off the Ravens before he can get to that point, though.
