Many reports seemed to indicate that 42-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers was to fly into Pittsburgh over the weekend, meet with the franchise and hash some things out before ultimately signing a deal ahead of the start of OTAs on May 18.
That never developed over the weekend as the Steelers conducted rookie minicamp at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side.
Now, the Rodgers saga drags into another week with no end in sight. That might be a good thing though as it could lead to meaningful reps for the young quarterbacks in Will Howard and Drew Allar moving forward under first-year head coach Mike McCarthy.
Ultimately, Rodgers will likely sign and be the Steelers’ starting quarterback in 2026, but for former NFL player and current ESPN analyst Damien Woody there’s one best-case scenario for Pittsburgh in all of this Rodgers drama.
“That eventually a young quarterback will start, will play at some point this upcoming season,” Woody said Monday on ESPN’s Unsportsmanlike. “What’s the upside of Aaron Rodgers? If you’re the Pittsburgh Steelers, what’s the upside? There’s no upside. I think, for me, I think impeding those young guys getting meaningful reps seeing what they can do and possibly putting Pittsburgh in a position that if they need to draft of high quarterback next in next year’s draft.
“To me, that’s what it’s all about. Pittsburgh’s eye should be towards the future, not looking in the past for a 42-year-old quarterback.”
After picking Allar in the third round of the 2026 NFL Draft, the Steelers at least have their eyes on the horizon at the quarterback position. McCarthy largely landed the head coaching position in Pittsburgh due to his track record of developing quarterbacks, and Pittsburgh has been in QB purgatory since Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement after the 2021 season, so they appear to be taking the necessary steps towards fixing that.
Yet, they continue to wait for Rodgers. It wasn’t supposed to play out like it did last year, but it’s happening once again.
The Steelers believed they’d have an answer before free agency, then before the draft. Now, they’re hoping for an answer before the start of OTAs next week. We’ll see what happens, but as Woody stated, the best-case scenario would be to turn things over to the young quarterbacks, find out what you have, and position yourselves for the 2027 NFL Draft in what projects to be a loaded crop.
It’s well past time to rip the Band-Aid off. The McCarthy hiring was supposed to change things. So far though, it hasn’t, at least when it comes to waiting for Rodgers and hoping to just be competitive in 2026.
Recommended for you