The NFL offseason turns eerily closer to the NFL Draft and the Pittsburgh Steelers still do not have a clear-cut starting quarterback on their roster.
Enter Aaron Rodgers, the oft-maligned 41-year-old four-time MVP winner who seems keen on coming to Pittsburgh. The team is seemingly happy to have him: ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported on Friday’s taping of ‘Sportscenter’ that the Steelers are “aggressively pursuing him.”
Many in the NFL world are slightly befuddled why a team riding a 21-season winning record streak would want a quarterback clearly in the twilight of his career, including veteran Pittsburgh defensive tackle Cam Heyward. The seven-time Pro Bowler didn’t exactly welcome Rodgers with open arms when discussing the quarterback on his ‘Not Just Football’ podcast last week.
“I ain’t doing that darkness retreat,” Heyward said of the prolonged decision process. “I don’t need any of that crap. Either you want to be a Steeler or you don’t. It’s simple. That’s the pitch.”
Rodgers visited the Steelers facility on Friday but didn’t walk out with a contract. Fowler laid out the entire situation: “[Pittsburgh has] already got a contract offer standing out to Rodgers in place,” he said.
“So they talked about fit. He met with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, Mike Tomlin, owner, Art Rooney, and GM Omar Khan. In fact, I was told the Steelers wanted to make this meeting happen so much they skipped Michigan’s pro day yesterday, which if you know the Steelers, that’s a big deal,” he continued.
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“The whole contingent goes to every big pro day. They stood in town to meet with him. And look, I checked with a team source that said they’re aggressively pursuing this. He’s number one on their radar.”
Pittsburgh fans didn’t seem elated by the news when local CBS reporter Rickey Sayer took the treats to poll fan opinion on the 41-year-old quarterback.
“I spent 25 minutes Thursday speaking with Steelers fans in downtown Pittsburgh,” he posted on X. “I could only find a single one who wants Aaron Rodgers to join the team. ‘Don’t want to see you in black and yellow, don’t want to see you in Pittsburgh.’ said one fan.”
Others posted on X. One tweeted: “Horrible investment. He won’t last three games,” while another added: “Steelers are cooked …I’m sorry this is not the way.”
Analysts are saying the same. Popular X account @Steelers_DB (with over 15,000 followers) wrote “So… I watched all of Aaron Rodgers drop-backs from 2024. The good news is that the arm is still LIVE with real flashes of the MVP-caliber player we’re used to. But some concerning trends kept popping up on film.”
Pittsburgh’s 2024 starters, Justin Fields and Russell Wilson, have either found new homes (Fields to the Jets) or seem destined to move on (Wilson possibly joining the rival Cleveland Browns).
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