For more than a month, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been playing the waiting game. They’ve been flirting with Aaron Rodgers, but he’s made no decision yet. Recently, Mike Tomlin mentioned that the Steelers had put no deadline on Rodgers. The four-time NFL MVP confirmed that Thursday and said he will take no offense if the Steelers pivot elsewhere as he ponders his future.
“This entire time, I haven’t felt like I owed anybody some sort of decision at any point,” Rodgers said Thursday on The Pat McAfee Show. “This is my life. Things are different now. My life is different; my personal life is different. I have stuff in the inner circle that I’m intimately close to that’s really important to me.
“I’ve been up front with them about that and said, ‘If you need to move on, if you need to do something, by all means. Nothing but love and respect if that’s the decision that needs to be made.’ But there’s been no deadline. I’ve talked to Mike [Tomlin] many times.”
Rodgers made it clear on McAfee’s show that he’s got some serious issues going on in his personal life right now. That’s why he hasn’t made a decision, even though it looks like the Steelers are the only team in the market for him. While Rodgers has been branded a diva by some, he’s right that it’s his life. He can make whatever decision he wants.
However, the same is true for the Steelers. They can move on from Rodgers if they want to. It doesn’t sound like he’d hold that against them, either. It sounds like the Steelers are aware of that.
Rodgers is the best quarterback on the free agent market, though. If the Steelers want to compete for a Super Bowl in 2025, he gives them their best chance at that. That’s probably why they’re waiting for him. Waiting this long isn’t ideal, but they probably feel like it will be worth it if they land Rodgers.
However, that’s far from a sure thing. Although the Steelers have placed no deadline on Rodgers, they might have to move on at some point. Rodgers didn’t rule out retirement during Thursday either. The Steelers could find themselves in a bad spot if they wait months for Rodgers, only for him to retire.
Hopefully, the team gets a more concrete answer soon. Rodgers made it clear he is more focused on non-football things, though, so it could still take some time before a decision comes. Maybe the Steelers will turn to the draft to find their next quarterback.
