The Pittsburgh Steelers have frustrated many with their wait for Aaron Rodgers throughout the offseason. They’re certainly taking the patient approach. It’s now May, and with offseason workouts looming shortly, now would be a good time for Rodgers to make a decision regarding his 2025 season.
While that decision hasn’t come, the Steelers have remained confident in their pursuit of Rodgers. Part of the reason for that could be because they’ve remained in contact with him, as NFL insider James Palmer mentioned on 93.7 The Fan on Monday.
“So maybe this is going the way that everybody involved understands it to happen,” Palmer said. “And at the same time, I know that he [Aaron Rodgers] has stayed in relatively constant contact with Mike Tomlin. So I do believe there’s enough things pointing that Aaron Rodgers would be the quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers.”
As is the case with any team needing a quarterback, the Steelers have been linked via rumors to almost every option on the market this offseason. Yet, they’ve made just a few minuscule moves at the position. Make no mistake, Mason Rudolph, Skylar Thompson, and Will Howard can be solid backup options in 2024. Yet, this far into the offseason, the Steelers have done nothing else at the position.
The only reasonable explanation is that they expect Rodgers to sign at some point. Palmer’s report that the sides have been in contact is encouraging as well. Rodgers has an extremely small circle around him, and he does his best to keep outside noise away. So, if he’s keeping in contact with Tomlin, that’s a good sign for the Steelers’ hopes of landing him.
Pittsburgh’s been patient, but that patience is going to wear thin. The Steelers wanted an answer from Aaron Rodgers before the draft, but clearly didn’t get one. Art Rooney II said the Steelers will continue to wait for him but hinted that they’d like not to have to wait too much longer.
At this point, though, there really isn’t another choice. For what it’s worth, Mike Tomlin has marked training camp as a potential deadline for Rodgers, although it’s not an absolute. So, the wait could continue for another couple of months. The Steelers can’t be comfortable waiting that long. That doesn’t leave Rodgers with much time to gel with his new teammates or coaching staff either.
Yet, this is the bed the Steelers have made for themselves. They didn’t value Justin Fields enough to offer him as much as the New York Jets did, and they repeatedly passed on Shedeur Sanders in the draft as well.
That doesn’t mean either of those decisions was wrong. However, the Steelers now find themselves waiting on one of the most polarizing figures the league has seen in recent years. If Tomlin and Aaron Rodgers remain in contact, though, that can only mean good things for his chances of suiting up with the Steelers in 2025.
