With the New York Giants signing QB Russell Wilson, it seems to eliminate them as a suitor for QB Aaron Rodgers. That would leave the Steelers as the most likely destination for Rodgers, as they’re the only team still actively pursuing him. Yet, it’s still not a done deal, and on Good Morning Football, NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport said it’s “up in the air” whether Rodgers will play for the Steelers or sit out and potentially retire.
“It seems that for Rodgers, it’s going to be the Pittsburgh Steelers. Certainly, the team he visited, certainly the leader in the clubhouse for Aaron Rodgers. Or he’s gonna say, you know what, ‘I’m not gonna play this year,’ or ‘I’m not gonna play right now.’ That’s still up in the air.”
Rodgers will turn 42 in December, so retirement really isn’t out of the question. He’s accomplished a lot, winning four NFL MVP awards and a Super Bowl, but the question is whether Rodgers is going to want to call it a career after a disappointing 5-12 campaign with the New York Jets that led to his release.
If he doesn’t think he’ll have success playing in Pittsburgh, he very well might. But he’s also demonstrated interest in playing for the Steelers, as he took a visit to Pittsburgh’s facility on Friday and reportedly spent six hours meeting with the coaching staff and executives.
It’s been two weeks since the new league year began, but it feels a lot longer given how much we’ve talked about Rodgers. For the Steelers, it would be a blow if Rodgers retired instead of signing with them. They have laid everything on the line in their pursuit of Rodgers, watching other veteran quarterback options sign elsewhere (although the team did add Mason Rudolph) and not making an effort to re-sign Wilson. It’s Rodgers or bust at this point, and if he does retire, this weeks-long pursuit would make the Steelers look foolish.
The team is reportedly comfortable starting Mason Rudolph, but the optics regardless are going to be tough if Rodgers hangs up his cleats. It’s not as if Rodgers would be choosing another team over the Steelers, and while Rudolph was solid for the Steelers at the end of 2023, there’s zero chance they entered this offseason thinking they’d exit it with him as their starter. This whole saga has really shown the lack of a true quarterback plan, and Pittsburgh is going to get exposed if Aaron Rodgers isn’t playing for the Steelers next year.
