According to reports on Thursday, Aaron Rodgers is expected to travel to Pittsburgh on Friday and sign a contract to play for the 2025 season. For obvious reasons, that’s a relief for Steelers fans, with the franchise waiting on the veteran quarterback for most of the offseason. With Rodgers potentially in town, there might be one more name to keep in mind, and that’s WR Allen Lazard.
Speaking Thursday after the reports came out, Mike Florio expects Lazard to be in Pittsburgh sooner rather than later.
“Put me down for this,” Florio said, in a video posted to Pro Football Talk’s YouTube channel. “I fully expect, sooner than later, and no later than training camp, the Steelers will trade for Jets’ receiver Allen Lazard. Been waiting for that to happen… They’ve been waiting to know what Rodgers is going to do. And Lazard, I think, is the perfect complement… The question becomes, what do the Jets want?”
This isn’t the first time Florio has mentioned Lazard potentially becoming a Steeler. In the beginning of May, just after George Pickens was traded, Florio mentioned Lazard as a player who could be in play for Pittsburgh.
Where Rodgers goes, Lazard follows, and the two usually have success. Lazard entered the league with the Green Bay Packers in 2018. He played with Rodgers until he left for the Jets before the 2023 season. During those five years with Rodgers in Green Bay, Lazard posted 2,236 yards on 169 receptions, scoring 20 times in the process. Lazard wasn’t ever the main target there. Still, he did post over 400 receiving yards each year from 2019 to 2022 and finished with 788 in that final year.
Then, Allen Lazard ended up joining Rodgers in New York. Those two seasons are a good example as to how he fares with and without his favorite quarterback. In 2023, the year Rodgers suffered his Achilles injury, Lazard had 23 receptions for 311 yards with one touchdown. Even though Rodgers wasn’t lighting up the stat sheet in 2024, Lazard improved with him throwing the ball. That year, he had 37 receptions for 530 yards while scoring six times.
A move like this would make sense as the Steelers don’t have a ton a receiving depth. Lazard’s now going to be 30 years old and has only one season in his career with more than 600 receiving yards. The Steelers shouldn’t trade for him expecting him to step into the WR2 role. They also are showing interest in other receivers, including Gabe Davis, who visited the facility Thursday.
However, Allen Lazard would likely come cheap. If the Steelers aren’t expecting him to be their WR2, things could work out. With Rodgers entering a new offense with new teammates, having a familiar face around, like Lazard, could help ease that transition.
