Aaron Rodgers has nothing to do with the Pittsburgh Steelers passing on Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders. Or any of the other top passers of the 2025 NFL Draft. Joining Steelers Nation Radio Friday, Owner Art Rooney II said the decision to focus on defensive line over quarterback was made independently of Rodgers’ status.
“No, we really did not factor whether Aaron’s coming or not into that,” Rooney said when asked by Mike Prisuta about the team’s thought process. “I mean, look, if we draft a quarterback, and we still might, it’s probably not somebody that’s gonna start for us this year. It’s gonna be somebody that’ll be developing and may play down the road.
“So it’s not like it, as far as I’m concerned, not like somebody that’s gonna have a big impact on this season if we draft a quarterback.”
It echoes what head coach Mike Tomlin and general manager Omar Khan are on-record as saying. Rodgers is viewed as an immediate help to aid Pittsburgh in making the playoffs and winning its first playoff game since 2016. Drafting a rookie would be to help the team in the future. The Steelers clearly don’t want to go into the season starting a first-year player with the unknowns that come with it.
Pittsburgh went defensive line in the first round because it was a position of need that was largely unaddressed in free agency. Instead, the Steelers dipped into a deep draft pool at the position, grabbing a top talent in Oregon’s Derrick Harmon.
Rooney’s comments suggest that while the Steelers could draft a rookie Friday or Saturday, he wouldn’t be counted onto play right away. If Rodgers signs, the rookie would become the No. 3 behind Rodgers and Mason Rudolph. Even if Rodgers doesn’t, the Steelers would likely acquire another veteran to start or compete with Rudolph for the starting gig.
Possible quarterbacks the team could target include Ohio State’s Will Howard, Syracuse’s Kyle McCord, and Texas’ Quinn Ewers. With his unpredictable draft stock, Shedeur Sanders remains a possibility. As of this writing in the early second round, he’s yet to be selected.
