The news regarding Aaron Rodgers emerging as an option as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ starting quarterback that ESPN’s Adam Schefter broke early Monday morning was rather surprising, considering where the Steelers are with Justin Fields, having just traded for DK Metcalf, and seemingly exploring other options like Sam Darnold and Russell Wilson.
But Rodgers is seemingly waiting to see what happens with the Steelers at the quarterback position. That could lead to the 41-year-old quarterback and four-time NFL MVP making his way to the Steel City for the 2025 season.
That notion has many up in arms and questioning what the Steelers are doing, should that happen. But for long-time Steelers reporter Mark Kaboly, he believes a Rodgers pairing with Pittsburgh makes all the sense in the world, especially for 2025 as the Steelers are aiming to win now with the trade for Metcalf and the core of their defense not getting any younger.
On the Kaboly+Mack Show Monday morning, Kaboly stated his case for why Rodgers makes sense, later giving it a 51% chance that Rodgers is the Steelers’ starting quarterback in Week 1.
“So what I’m saying is the guy still, he doesn’t seem to me a guy that’s lost anything. He still, I keep saying it: he still has the arm talent to be a very good quarterback in this league,” Kaboly said of Rodgers, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “Now, obviously he’s not a long-term answer, but if you’re going out there and saying, ‘I need to win right now’, which is everything suggests that’s their plan, then why don’t you make the play on a guy who’s been there, done that, four-time MVP, Super Bowl winner, still can play, still has the arm?”
That win-now portion of the comment is most important. Rodgers shouldn’t be viewed as a long-term answer at this point. Yes, the Steelers need to figure out a long-term answer at the position, but the most important year for the Steelers is 2025. Does Rodgers offer them enough hope and promise to be a true winner and get a playoff win or two under their belts come the postseason compared to others like Russell Wilson, Justin Fields and Sam Darnold?
The answer, historically, is yes with Rodgers. Granted, he’s coming off of a disastrous 2024 season with the Jets in which New York went 5-12, the head coach was fired early in the season, Rodgers had some public clashes with ownership, and he created more headlines than necessary during appearances on The Pat McAfee Show.
But on the field, especially late in the year, Rodgers showed he still might have something left in the tank. In his final five games of the season, Rodgers had a passer rating of 98.3, threw for 1,270 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions. That included one game of 339 passing yards against the Miami Dolphins, and then a four-touchdown game in Week 18 to close out his Jets tenure.
Based on those numbers and some of the plays he made, he still has something left in the tank. But it is worth it for the Steelers knowing all the baggage that comes with it? Kaboly thinks it is.
“Yeah, it’s one year. It’s one year. Take a shot. Isn’t this what we’ve been complaining about for years and years and years? You know, the murky middle, playing it safe? Just go for it,” Kaboly said. “If it doesn’t work out, they’ve proved that they don’t give a crap, and they changed [the] quarterback room every single year. I think we’ve learned that by now by this: if they do bring Rodgers in will be what, six starters over the past three years or whatever the number is.
“Do it again. Do it again. I don’t care. They’re trying to win now, and we complain when they don’t try to win now, and we complain when they do try to win now.”
At this point in his career, Rodgers doesn’t exactly scream a win-now move but based on his history and the production he’s had in his career, the argument can be made that he’s the best option among all of the ones available to help the Steelers in their win-now window.
We’ll see what happens. But where there’s smoke, there’s bound to be fire.
