Once upon a time, Aaron Rodgers quarterbacking the Steelers would have been a dream come true. Fifteen years removed from his dominating performance against the Steelers in the Super Bowl, however, it might seem closer to a nightmare.
That’s how ESPN reporter Brooke Pryor envisions a hypothetical pairing of the enigmatic quarterback and the traditional franchise of stability. The Jets are expected to release Aaron Rodgers, and the Steelers don’t have a credible quarterback under contract. Would kicking the tires, though, do more harm than good, rather than moving on with Russell Wilson?
“Aaron Rodgers isn’t Russell Wilson, but it is a very similar move. It worked out somewhat last year, but not enough to say that, ‘Yeah, we want to run that back in this coming year’”, Brooke Pryor said on the Locked on Steelers podcast. “To me, not only do you not get the same upside that you got with the Russell Wilson moon ball if you bring in Aaron Rodgers—to me, he’s not as consistent—he is also, I think, a terrible presence in the locker room. Every single time he talks, it’s a sub-tweet at someone”.
Aaron Rodgers is a future Hall of Famer for his play on the field, but he has been controversial off it. While his intelligence is acknowledged, he has a history of rubbing people the wrong way. He can be abrasive and temperamental, seeming to put himself over others. And as the Jets found out, Rodgers would likely bring an entourage with him to the Steelers. Wilson had his own entourage, of course, but not in the locker room.
“You don’t just get Aaron Rodgers the football player. You get Aaron Rodgers and the Pat McAfee appearances weekly”. Pryor said. “You get Aaron Rodgers and demanding that the team make trades to bring in Davante Adams and Allen Lazard”. Pryor summed it up, saying if the Steelers were to pursue him, you get not just the quarterback but “the Aaron Rodgers Multiverse”.
She is referring, of course, to Rodgers pushing the Jets to sign his former teammates, to which the Steelers might be less receptive. For that matter, they likely would be less able. But New York could well release both Rodgers and Adams, so they might come in a package deal of sorts.
Reportedly, the Jets tried to get him to end his weekly appearances on The Pat McAfee Show, which occasionally drew unwanted attention for comments made. The Steelers already have enough problems in that vein, so welcoming more from a figure like Aaron Rodgers may not be the move to make.
There is a football argument for the Steelers signing Rodgers, of course, if he were receptive. He wasn’t always at his best last season, but he still managed 28 touchdown passes. Projecting some improvement after missing the 2023 season, one could imagine they would be as capable of winning games in 2025 as they were in 2024 with Wilson. One would hope, anyway, because if not, all the baggage that he totes would not be worth it. And even then, it would still be a tough sales pitch to make.
