The Pittsburgh Steelers are re-living their 2024 offseason frustrations. Instead of waiting on the Brandon Aiyuk trade to go through at any moment, they are waiting on Aaron Rodgers to sign with the Steelers. What seemed imminent in March has become very annoying to Steeler Nation. There are numerous theories as to why the deal is not done yet, but there is no way to be sure of what the actual holdup is. It would be better for all parties involved to make a decision as soon as possible.
AP photo
Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin meets with former New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers after a game during the 2024 NFL season.
On an episode of The Insiders, Ian Rapoport once again brought up the Rodgers saga and talked about recent Ben Roethlisberger's thoughts on the situation.
"As far as Roethlisberger goes, he said a lot of things here that are not entirely wrong," said Rapoport. "I don't believe Aaron Rodgers is waiting on the Minnesota Vikings right now. He's had enough conversations with his good buddy Kevin O'Connell to know that the Vikings are looking at JJ McCarthy as their starting quarterback, and if somehow, some way, something terrible were to happen where this is not the case, it's not going to come now. Any sort of realization would come more in training camp as opposed to now, and I don't expect Rodgers to wait that long."
The Minnesota Vikings have been the other option for Rodgers ever since the New York Giants signed a pair of veterans for their quarterback room. The problem is that the Vikings have 2024's 10th overall pick at quarterback, and they can't give up on him without seeing him ever take a snap in the regular season. Why would they sign Rodgers at this point?
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Vikings' JJ McCarthy looks to run with the ball during the 2024 preseason.
Rapoport also mentions that Minnesota is probably where Rodgers would like to be the most, as Roethlisberger said. The problem is that those feelings are not mutual. If he is truly waiting on the Vikings to give him a call, he will be waiting a very long time.
JJ McCarthy suffered a season-ending injury in the 2024 preseason, so that whole year ended up being basically a redshirt season for him. While he could not really develop his physical attributes, he still learned about how the game is played via the film room and watching Sam Darnold during his revival season.
At this point, Rodgers' only options are signing with the Steelers, waiting for someone like McCarthy to get injured, or retiring. The Vikings have other plans, and Mike Tomlin is desperate to get the former MVP and Super Bowl champion onto his team. There is not a more sure fire place for him to start all 17 games than in Pittsburgh.
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Aaron Rodgers stands with Mike Tomlin before a game while he was the quarterback for the Green Bay Packers.
Steelers Need Rodgers To Make A Decision Soon
At a certain point, the Steelers' coaches have to start coming up with gameplans for the upcoming 2025 season. If minicamps roll around and Rodgers has not signed his contract yet, the offensive staff will have to just forget about him and build everything around Mason Rudolph. If he signs after that, then they may have to start over, or at least backtrack a little bit on their vision for the season.
Rudolph and Rodgers each have certain strengths and limitations. The younger quarterback can move better and knows how the system works from his first stint in Pittsburgh. Rodgers has probably heard a lot about how things work with the Steelers, but no one truly knows until they experience it. It won't be an easy transition for the offensive staff to go from working with someone who understands the system to immediately change courses and find a way to have someone else fit in.
What do you think about Minnesota not being an option for Rodgers? Will he make a decision soon? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.
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