The Pittsburgh Steelers are relying a lot on change going into the 2025 NFL season. The roster has gone through some re-tooling, and the fans are a bit optimistic. A lot of the hope and optimism stems from the organization signing veteran quarterback and four-time league MVP Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers should be the best quarterback the organization has had in years, and he really started to play well during the second half of the 2024 season as he bounced back from an Achilles injury he suffered the year prior.
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Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) during 2025 training camp in Latrobe, PA.
Rodgers is looking to rebound from a rough two seasons with the New York Jets. He went through the serious injury in 2023, and things were in complete disarray throughout the 2024 season. New York wound up firing its head coach and general manager in the middle of the 2024 season, and the franchise was one of the bigger laughingstocks in the league while only winning five games. NFL fans seem to underestimate Rodgers because of how things went with the Jets, but former NFL tight end Greg Olsen has a different perspective, which he shared Wednesday on The Rich Eisen Show.
"He was not nearly as bad as everyone thinks he was last year," Olsen said. "I think he was less good on the Aaron Rodgers scale of expectations, which I think for most quarterbacks playing, they would've taken his season last year. I think there was a lot of things going on in New York with the Jets that were bigger problems than Aaron. A motivated Aaron Rodgers, a guy looking to say, 'I'm moving around a little bit, bouncing around the league late in my career, but I'm still the dude, I'm still an MVP, and I can still carry an offense,' I think that's a dangerous proposition as they piece that thing together."
Olsen believes Rodgers is going to be entering the 2025 season with a chip on his shoulder, which should motivate him to play well. There is also an added fuel to the fire since Pittsburgh will travel to New Jersey to take on the Jets in Week 1, which is the organization that decided to release Rodgers after the 2024 season.
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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) during 2025 training camp in Latrobe, PA.
Rodgers' play from the 2024 season is judged pretty harshly, and part of that is because the Jets were only able to win five games. However, he played a lot better than people realize. He started the year off shaky, but as the year went on, he continued to improve. The second half of the season was pretty impressive from Rodgers, and he finished the year with nearly 4,000 passing yards and 28 touchdowns.
From Week 8 and on in 2024, Rodgers threw for over 2,200 yards, 18 touchdowns, and just four interceptions. He started to look like himself again, and the Steelers will hopefully be getting some version of that in 2025.
Steelers' Aaron Rodgers Has More Talent Around Him In 2025
Rodgers is not going to be relied upon as much to win with Pittsburgh as he was in New York. The Steelers have what should be a dominant defense, and the coaching staff is going to try to rely on the run throughout the year. Rodgers does not need to be a superhero in order to win games for Pittsburgh in 2025, but it is good to know he has some of that magic left in him if it is needed.
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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) during the annual Friday Night Lights practice in training camp of 2025.
If the Steelers can see some good progression from the offensive line, and the young targets in the passing game can be reliable and productive, Pittsburgh should have a good chance to break the near-decade long playoff win drought.
What do you think about Olsen's outlook on Rodgers and the Steelers in 2025? Let us know in the comments down below!
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