The Pittsburgh Steelers are in need of a solution at quarterback for the 2025 season, especially with Justin Fields drawing interest from other teams. Aaron Rodgers is in need of one final team to put an exclamation point on the end of his career, and he probably isn’t going to find much better than the current roster in Pittsburgh.
Louis Riddick sees enough positives to make it a win-win for both sides.
“They need each other,” Riddick said via ESPN’s Get Up this morning. “As great as [Rodgers] is, and as many great ideas as he has, and he actually is a guy who has huge football IQ, I mean we understand all of this. He needs a guy like Mike [Tomlin] to say, ‘Hey, look man, you can’t do this by yourself. You can’t be coach, GM, offensive coordinator and quarterback all at the same time. I got that part, I’ll handle that part. You just level up our offense.’
“I would hope he would wanna go out with a bang. He would wanna go out somewhere that really does kind of put a shine or rather just put that cherry on the top of what is a Hall of Fame career, and Pittsburgh’s the kind of place you would wanna do that.”
Rodgers needs the stability of a well-run organization, and the Steelers just need someone who can make the offense hum. They would be offering those services to each other at a low point for both parties, which rightfully leads many to wonder if it’s a good fit. Rodgers is 41 years old and just led a talented New York Jets team to a 5-12 record. The Steelers have remained stable on paper, but the level of frustration has been rising after a handful of first-round exits in the playoffs.
Kimberley A. Martin also chimed in on the matter and believes that the Steelers have more leverage in this situation.
“I think Aaron Rodgers needs the Steelers more than the Steelers need Aaron Rodgers,” Martin said. “If legacy is important to him, then I think the Steelers make sense.”
There have already been reports that Rodgers would like to play in 2025 with “unfinished business” after a disappointing 2024 season. No quarterback wants to go out like that with an injury-riddled season followed by a 5-12 misery. That being said, the belief is that he would only want to go to a team that gives him a chance to right the ship. If you look at the QB-needy teams, most of them have significant problems on their rosters.
The Steelers have issues, but they were a 10-win playoff team for the last two seasons. A quarterback in Rodgers’ position might look at that as a prime opportunity to go out with a bang. Just look at the career trajectory of Brett Favre for what is possible on one final stop with the Minnesota Vikings.
Adam Schefter stated that the Steelers won’t start their QB search with Rodgers, but in a situation where Justin Fields gets lured elsewhere and Russell Wilson’s camp wants too much money, maybe Rodgers could come into play. Though I have to admit, I am skeptical that the Rooney family would sign off on bringing a mercurial figure like him to town at this point in his career.
