The Pittsburgh Steelers are pretty much the only team remaining without a clear starting candidate at quarterback entering April. They have an offer on the table for Aaron Rodgers, but until he signs, assuming he does, they are vulnerable. Should he choose not to sign, they have precious few alternatives, without great draft resources to address the position.
Despite the predicament resting so precariously on the whims of a man who considers himself an enigma, the Steelers believe they are in a stable position. On Monday, HC Mike Tomlin said they were “really comfortable with being unsettled”, which is not true of the fans. It is an attitude Tomlin has adopted since 2022, after QB Ben Roethlisberger retired.
So far, that attitude has not produced results, considering the Steelers are still in the same boat. Since then, they have turned over their quarterback room almost annually. The Steelers have already gone through one first-round quarterback, opting for veterans last season and presumably in 2025 given their pursuit of Rodgers. They may not have hit upon the solution just yet, but they are confident in their methods.
“Right now, all options are on the table”, Steelers GM Omar Khan told the team’s website yesterday. He was referring to means of acquiring talent at quarterback, whether signing or trading for a veteran or drafting a rookie. “We spent a lot of time on all three phases of that. I view this time as a friend, not necessarily as something negative. We’ve got time to figure it out. We feel good about our process”.
That process began with the Steelers offering Justin Fields a contract that he turned down to leave in free agency. Khan offered little in regard to that situation, simply allowing that he chose to sign with the Jets. By appearances, it doesn’t seem they ever presented a contract offer to Russell Wilson, who signed with the Giants.
With their entire quarterback room from last season gone, the Steelers do have Mason Rudolph under contract again. They claim to be comfortable with him as a starter if it comes down to it, but they are also committed to adding another veteran. Whether that is Aaron Rodgers or somebody else, Rudolph won’t be alone.
As far as the Steelers’ process goes, right now it involves giving Rodgers whatever space and time he needs to reach a decision. In the meantime, they are doing their due diligence studying this quarterback draft class. What they will do if Rodgers opts not to sign, it’s really not clear. Their options are limited among veterans and would include the likes of Carson Wentz and Joe Flacco.
While the Steelers feel good about their process, few others do. Indeed, the absence of a more concrete plan at quarterback at the end of Ben Roethlisberger’s career is often cited as the biggest blunder Mike Tomlin ever made. Of course, successful succession plans are exceedingly rare at quarterback in the NFL and are sometimes accidental. The Steelers did draft a quarterback in the first round. It just happened to be in a bad year to need a quarterback—like this one.
