The NFL offseason is rolling along, but for the Pittsburgh Steelers, the wait for Aaron Rodgers continues. Since the first few days of free agency, it’s been rumored that Rodgers would sign with the Steelers. However, no deal is done yet. The four-time NFL MVP is dealing with personal issues that are presumably keeping him from signing with a team. Art Rooney II seems confident that Rodgers will land in Pittsburgh, and Thomas Tull, a part-owner of the Steelers, joked about the situation Tuesday.
“I’m here to talk about AI, and that’s a more complex issue than artificial intelligence,” Tull said during an appearance on CNBC when asked about Rodgers potentially being a Steeler.
Tull is a movie mogul and businessman who became a part-owner of the Steelers in 2009. He’s invested in some complicated things, like artificial intelligence, but it sounds like this situation with Rodgers even has him puzzled.
A few weeks ago, Rooney sounded surprised that it was taking so long for Rodgers to make a decision. It didn’t sound like he was anticipating waiting so far into the offseason for something to officially happen. Now, even more time as passed, with the wait likely feeling endless for some.
Mike Tomlin has also stressed that he’s willing to be patient with Rodgers. However, there was a report that the Steelers asked Rodgers for an answer before the draft. Clearly, if that did happen, then it didn’t work because Rodgers is still a free agent.
Rodgers is a controversial figure, and he’s done things his own way, especially in recent years. It seems like that’s staying true in his first stint as a free agent. It’s understandable for him to take his time, but at some point, the Steelers might have to move on from him. Rodgers has stated that he’s told teams that are interested in him that there’s no hard feelings if that happens.
Ultimately, Rodgers gives the Steelers their best chance at being an actual competitor this year. Mason Rudolph is a fine backup, but the team’s ceiling with him isn’t very high. Because they’ve waited so long for Rodgers, the Steelers have missed out on the other decent quarterbacks who were available. Now, it feels like Rodgers or bust, and it’s unclear when this saga will end.
