GREEN BAY, Wis. — This fall, Oct. 26 will be more than just a heavyweight bout fit only for the national stage of 'Sunday Night Football' between the Green Bay Packers and Pittsburgh Steelers, two of the most winningest franchises in league history.
It'll be a date that's circled on the calendars of both Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love as the two quarterbacks—the grizzled teacher and, once upon a time, his student—are set to clash while leading their respective teams into battle. The 41-year-old Rodgers agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Steelers on Thursday, arrived in Pittsburgh Friday night and passed his physical Saturday morning, cementing his status as their starting quarterback for the upcoming campaign.
Beyond 2025, of course, is a beautiful mystery, as Rodgers would likely say.
The future Hall of Famer will turn 42 years old in December and whether or not this season will mark his swan song remains to be seen, but he'll at least be able to have the opportunity to join elite company as one of five quarterbacks to beat all 32 teams. All he has to do is get past the Packers, who Rodgers quarterbacked for 15 seasons. It will likely be his final chance to join the rare, elite club.
Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love exit the tunnel together for a game against the Seattle Seahawks in 2021. (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
"I was excited for him, that he was obviously coming back and going to be playing," Love told Channell3000. "There were also some rumors that he might be done, so just knowing he's going to keep playing, that's pretty awesome."
The Packers didn't just spend a first-round pick on Utah State's Love in the spring of 2020—they traded up to do it, packaging pick Nos. 30 and 136 to the Miami Dolphins for No. 26 where they would select Rodgers' successor. For three seasons, Love sat behind Rodgers and absorbed as much knowledge as he could while the latter would win back-to-back Most Valuable Player awards in an effort to show team brass that there was still much, much more left in the tank.
After the 2022 season, however, the Packers were ready to move on from Rodgers and hand the keys to the franchise over to Love. It was a polarizing decision, but the Packers' front office has historically shown that they won't shy away from divisive maneuvers if they feel it's in the franchise's best interest. Ron Wolf traded a first-round pick for Brett Favre in 1992 and Ted Thompson drafted Rodgers in 2005 despite having Favre in the stable—business is business. Each of these moves were seen as perplexing at the time, but the Packers would wind up winning a Super Bowl with both Favre and Rodgers.
The hope is that a similar chapter will be written for Love, who has led the Packers to back-to-back playoff berths in each of his first two seasons as the starter—something neither his nor Rodgers' predecessor was able to accomplish.
While they may be on opposite sides of the field in October, there's no animosity or even a smidge of bad blood between the two signal callers. That all goes back to how Rodgers handled what would wind up being an inevitable transition of power in his three seasons with Love. Rodgers knows full and well how it felt to be the new guy—how it felt, in Favre's eyes, to be the guy that was ultimately going to take his job. It didn't bode well for the relationship between the two, with Favre famously stating that his contract didn't say that he needed to get Rodgers ready to play.
Having that firsthand experience of knowing essentially what not to do helped sculpt a foundation for Rodgers and Love—he wasn't going to treat the new kid the same way he was treated.
"I appreciate the way A-Rod handled being in that situation, and I think a big part of it, which he told me, was he knew how it was for him being in the same position and the things he went through and the way the situation might've been handled," Love said. "I think his perspective was, 'I'm trying to go about this a little bit differently,' which I think was awesome.
"In my time with him, we had a great relationship. It was awesome being in the same room with him, being able to learn. He was amazing with everything and I definitely appreciate the way he handled everything on the outside with, obviously, him leaving and me taking over. He's been very supportive of me."
Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers sit on the bench together during a game against the Miami Dolphins in 2006. (Photo: USA TODAY Sports)
Rodgers had what could only be described as a forgettable two-year stint with the New York Jets after being traded there from the Packers in the spring of 2023. He sustained a torn Achilles tendon in the season-opening game, and while he was able to return in time for the following season, it was clear that he was still being hindered by both the mental and physical aftermath of such a traumatic setback. He threw fewer than 30 touchdowns in a full season for just the sixth time in his career—two of those instances were before 2011—and completed 63.0 percent or less of his passes for the fourth time.
He still managed to play all 17 games in a season where he turned 41 years old, which is an impressive feat in itself. The Steelers are hoping that there's something left in Rodgers that could help ignite their path to the postseason in what could wind up being the twilight of Mike Tomlin's stint as head coach—a post he's held since 2007.
But the Packers have their own path. Love is 26 years old and is tied to the team for the foreseeable future as their franchise quarterback. The goal is to get over the hump and get back to a Super Bowl for the first time since 2010—something the Packers weren't able to replicate with Rodgers. A trip to Acrisure Stadium for a duel with someone who will one day be inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame be damned, Love and co. know what their mission is and they may have to put a legend down in order to achieve it.
We've seen this play out once already when the Favre-led Minnesota Vikings returned to Lambeau Field in 2009 and 2010. Favre joined the Packers' NFC North rival purely out of spite—Rodgers' situation is a lot less cinematic. Even so, Rodgers' fingerprints are still all over the organization to this day, from Love's passing mechanics—which could be more of a testament to Rodgers' longtime position coach, Tom Clements, than anything else—to the leadership passed down to other players in the locker room.
"It's going to be fun," said Love. "It's going to be awesome. I'm excited for it. I can't wait to be on different sides, meeting up, and I know we'll talk pre-game, things like that. Hopefully we can exchange jerseys after."
Zachary Jacobson is the Editor-in-Chief of Packer Report. He is entering his 11th season covering theGreen Bay Packers. He is a member of thePro Football Writers of America. Follow him on Twitter@zacobson or contact him via email atitszachariahj@gmail.com