The Pittsburgh Steelers are in need of a starting quarterback, but it appears that their first option is Aaron Rodgers. However, at 42, he could retire. That’s been an option for him for the last few offseasons. This is reminiscent of last year for the Steelers, who waited months to get a decision from Rodgers about his future. While Omar Khan doesn’t think the team will have to wait that long again, Dave Dameshek still believes the Steelers’ pursuit of Rodgers is a bad idea.
“We can officially cross off the Pittsburgh Steelers from contention,” Dameshek said recently on his Football America podcast. “More accurately, they’ve crossed themselves off. Not even two months after watching Aaron Rodgers shrink against a playoff-level team, the Steelers’ stated plan for 2026 is to wait out Aaron Rodgers.
“That’s 40-something Rodgers, which in football terms means Rodgers is old. His kryptonite is any team with a pass rush. He wasn’t bad in 2025; he wasn’t great in 2025; he was fine. But you’d have to be high on horse paste to think he’s gonna get better, or even be as good, next season.”
It’s March, so the Steelers aren’t out of Super Bowl contention for 2026 yet. Also, they won the AFC North with Rodgers last year. While Dameshek is correct that Rodgers wasn’t exceptional, he did enough to get the Steelers into the playoffs, and the Steelers’ offensive issues weren’t because of him.
Are the Steelers likely to be Super Bowl contenders with Rodgers next season? No. However, they could be a playoff team again, and if they make the postseason, they at least have a chance to make a championship run.
Rodgers has had a lot of success in Mike McCarthy’s offense before, too. The two were together from 2006-2018, and they won a Super Bowl, with Rodgers also being named MVP twice. While he isn’t at that level anymore, there’s reason to believe that Rodgers could be better in McCarthy’s offense compared to Arthur Smith’s.
Also, the Steelers could improve the rest of the offense around Rodgers. Their wide receiver depth behind DK Metcalf wasn’t great, and their run game wasn’t consistent. If the Steelers re-sign Rodgers, then putting him in a better situation should be a top priority.
While Rodgers isn’t the same player that he used to be, he looks like the Steelers’ best option under center this season. Then, hopefully, they can try to draft their next franchise quarterback in 2027. Rodgers isn’t a bad one-year option.
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