The Pittsburgh Steelers, and all other 31 organizations around the NFL have officially trimmed their rosters down to the 53 players that will be relied upon on game days. Some other minor tweaks and changes may be made, but for the most part, fan bases around the league have a good idea of what their team is going to look like. With the regular season kicking off in under a week, franchises are beginning to announce team captains for the 2025 season as well.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (X: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin roams the practice field as his team works out during a 2025 training camp practice at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA.
Some teams around the NFL have as many as eight team captains, while Pittsburgh keeps things more simple. The organization has named just four players as captains, with one coming on offense, one on special teams, and two on defense. Three captains are returning in the role from the 2024 season, and they are Cam Heyward, TJ Watt, and Miles Killebrew. The newcomer at captain is none other than quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Aaron Rodgers is a team captain in his first year as a Pittsburgh Steeler. pic.twitter.com/vCu2febTAx
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 1, 2025
There are not really any surprises from who the Steelers named as captains. Heyward, Watt, and Killebrew are all multi-time captains, and most teams in the NFL name their starting quarterback a captain -- especially one who has won the MVP Award four times and played over 20 years in the league. It should come as no surprise that Rodgers was named, despite some preconceived notions about the quarterback.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (X: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks at his play sheet during training camp in Latrobe, PA.
Unlike most teams, fans won't be able to tell who is a captain on the field from any certain identifier. The Steelers are one of the few organizations that do not put the captains patch on their jerseys. It will be those four players at the middle of the field before the coin toss for each game, which is going to be interesting for Rodgers during Week 1 against the New York Jets, and in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers.
What do you think about the captains for the 2025 season? Is this what you expected? Let us know in the comments below!
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