Rodgers Red Flags: Why Aaron Rodgers Might Not Be the Best Play for the Steelers
With the Giants’ signing of Russell Wilson to a one-year contract, another signal caller is out of the realm of possibilities for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2025. As it stands today, quarterbacks Skylar Thompson and Mason Rudolph are the only two under contract for the Pittsburgh Steelers. This leaves only but a few players that people are still talking about as potential targets for the team via trade or free agency. The two that I have heard the most about personally are Aaron Rodgers and Kirk Cousins.
For weeks now, there has been a saga about Aaron Rodgers taking his time and deciding if and where he wants to play in 2025. For a while, the report was that Rodgers wanted to play for the Minnesota Vikings, but the Vikings are planning to move forward with JJ McCarthy and reportedly do not have interest in Rodgers. The New York Giants were another potential suitor, but this seems less likely with the signing of Russell Wilson. This leaves Pittsburgh as the likely Rodgers landing spot. It seems especially likely since Rodgers and Tomlin have had a long and public history of respect for each other. Rodgers was brought in to visit the facility, but he left the steel city without a deal.
I know there are many out there who think Rodgers gives the Steelers the best chance to win in 2025. This very well may be a true statement. To me, however, there are a lot of red flags that go up when I think about Rodgers suiting up in the black and gold.
As much as Mike Tomlin has praised Rodgers in the past, Tomlin also consistently states that he wants volunteers, not hostages, to play for him. Rodgers drawing out his choice as to where he will play does not seem like the behavior of a volunteer to me. Reports of Rodgers wanting the Vikings for weeks when the interest was not mutual does not sound like he wants to be in Pittsburgh. Even after visiting, a contract still has not been signed. Do we as fans really want the Steelers to sign a quarterback to a fairly large contract when they don’t want to play for the franchise? Does the organization want that?
When asked about this situation, Cam Heyward noted that the locker room would be just fine with Mason Rudolph as QB1 for the season. It sounds like he has gained the respect of a lot of his teammates to the point that they would feel comfortable moving forward with him. To paraphrase Heyward’s recent remarks on Aaron Rodgers coming to Pittsburgh, “You want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler or you don’t.” This echoes the sentiment, to some degree, discussed above. If a leader of the team is making a statement like that, would bringing Rodgers into the locker room at this point produce a cohesive unit that works well together? Maybe. Then again, maybe not. It sounds like Heyward wants someone who wants to play with him at quarterback and not someone who is just settling for the last team standing in terms of offers.
This current saga is a perfect example of the drama and potential distractions that would be brought into the facility if Rodgers were to be signed as well. This is not a first for him, as some of his press conferences in New York felt as though there was certainly locker room tension. Even in Green Bay, Rodgers could be seen in-game yelling at teammates when something went awry. There is something to be said for holding teammates accountable and being passionate, but I personally witnessed it too many times to feel good about Rodgers as a great locker room leader. I’m sure there are many fans out there who would deal with this for the talents of Rodgers and his potential success in Pittsburgh, and I think they have a great argument. I am just not one of them.
Something else to consider with Rodgers is his age and asking price. While an aging player is not always a lesser player than the younger versions of themselves, Aaron Rodgers is a quarterback in his 40s two years removed from a ruptured Achilles tendon. He is not getting any younger, and his body has taken a lot of hits at this point in his career. Does he have a chance at having the mobility he had five years ago? He very well might need it behind an offensive line that, while a lot has been invested in it over several years, is still solidifying its identity. Say he physically can still perform at a very high level in his 40s, is it worth the risk of paying him a potentially $30 million/year contract knowing his recent injury history? Could that money be used better elsewhere at other positions of need? I don’t have the answers to these questions, and I’m not going to pretend to. However, I don’t think a Rodgers signing would be without risk.
Will Rodgers be in the black and gold next year? Maybe the Steelers organization sees more green flags than red, but I personally have concerns if that happens.
Let’s address another big elephant in the room that everyone seems to have forgotten due to how long Rodgers has been in the League.
Aaron Rodgers has been very vocal his whole career about his UNWILLINGNESS to mentor and train a young QB. That is absolutely a NO GO from me for being the Steelers QB. If he has gotten over himself and his ego and has agreed with Coach Tomlin that he is willing to train the next guy, then this starts to make a TON more sense.
Otherwise, it’s too steep a price tag for me, for no guarantee of performance (or length of performance) that will handcuff the team financially to find other pieces should Rodgers get hurt or Diva himself out of Pittsburgh…
Such a great point, Corey! A lack of willingness to mentor is definitely also not something that I as a fan want to see for the Steelers, especially with a fairly deep quarterback draft class coming in 2026.
So what. What do you want Rodgers to teach a young QB? Legendary QBs don’t teach QB’s that could take their job, in fact the only kinds of QB’s who do that are Alex Smith type QBs and even then, that rarely happens so to me get over it. There isn’t a QB in this year’s or next year’s draft that can do what guys like Big Ben or Rodgers have done so why go that route? Now a days young QBs are thrown to the wolves and are pretty much expected to “figure it out” with very little coaching.
I’ll take Rodgers and everything that could happen with him potentially coming here and do you people know why? I’ll tell you, it’s cause unlike the vast majority of fans I don’t pay attention to shows like First Take, Get Up, Pat McAfee, The Herd, First Thing’s First or Speak or for that matter shows that will spend multiple topics on the subject of Rodgers.
Why so many other fans can’t bring themselves to do that is beyond me but hey it’s their choice and they can do what they please just like I have. If Rodgers comes here and talks then he talks, it ain’t the end of the world nor would it be the end of the Steelers so deal with it and move on.
I think you may be way overstating what is meant be mentoring a young QB. While I have never been an NFL quarterback to know for sure, I have doubts that anyone expects an established QB to take a young QB under his wing and teach them all of the nuances of the trade. It’s far more likely that mentoring simply involves allowing a young guy to witness how the tenured guy operates. Give some feedback on why certain things were done here and there because, after all, these guys are on the same team and that young guy might be needed to win a playoff game later in the year. In the real world, “mentoring” a young guy probably simply means “don’t shun the young guy”.
Ben Roethlisberger famously shunned Mason Rudolph. Brett Favre famously shunned Aaron Rogers who famously passed that trait on the Jordan Love. Those guys all have something in common and it’s not good.
Conversely, Peyton Manning never shunned Jim Sorgi. Joe Montana never shunned Steve Young. Josh Allen doesn’t shun Mitch Trubisky. That’s not what real pros do.
Deep inside, I bet that Ben Roethlisberger feels like a real jackass for how he treated Mason Rudolph. If he doesn’t then he is a more miserable person then I realized.
Manning tutored Sorgi cause he knew along with the rest of the team that Sorgi was a backup and nothing more. Young was brought in because as he said it according to Bill Walsh: “He(meaning Montana) has had a 2nd back surgery and will not recover from it”. Young also said that he was brought in to be the Starter in San Fran not a backup. You can look up what I just said cause it’s true.
Your really brining up Trubisky who the Bears no longer wanted as a guy that had to be mentored by Allen?
Ben explained why he didn’t like the pick of Rudolph and guess what a lot of fans agreed with Ben on that matter.
Yes Favre didn’t tutor Rodgers, but can you blame guys like Ben, Favre and Rodgers for how they acted? All 3 were still at their “peak” and felt that the organization was already looking to replace them. I get that it’s a business and the players know that but put yourself in their shoes for a moment: Would you really tutor the guy who may be your replacement?
So what you are saying is that all tenured football players should just allow the new guys figure it out on their own. I hope you never find yourself working in such an environment.
Great players really don’t teach young players who could take their job. Does anybody know if Marino or Elway tutored a young QB during their time as QB’s? How bout LT, did he ever teach a young OLB that could take his spot? My whole point is that great players really can’t teach the next generation.
Big Ben started talking retirement as early as 2017. I think he was talking about it as leverage over the Steelers in contract talks, to which the Steelers called his bluff and drafted Mason Rudolph in Round 3 of 2018, later saying, “we had a 1st round grade on him.” Who knew that Ben would play through 2021.
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/18544440/ben-roethlisberger-pittsburgh-steelers-future-consider-all-options
Key phrase here is “what Rodgers *has* done* — he was a good player who might have been worth the drama and the headaches five years ago. Now he’s not, he’s a washed up shell of himself. The drama persists but the talent does not.
And for the love of god, try to make an argument on its merits instead of constantly constructing straw men. I have *never* watched any of the shows you reference — my low opinion of Rodgers is based solely on what I have seen from him over the years, so you cannot preemptively dismiss criticism of your position (I won’t dignify it by calling it an argument) by pretending that anyone who disagrees with you is just brainwashed by media blowhards.
Make an argument. One based on *Rodgers’s current level of play* – not his past, not your dream of what he could be, but who he is right now. I would take Mason Rudolph right now over the festering shell of Aaron Rodgers. Ayron can’t stand in the pocket, he can’t deliver accurate throws, he can’t avoid pressure, and he blames his failures on others.
So make a case that counters my arguments with observations and analysis, not logical fallacies and name calling. I am genuinely curious to see if you can do it.
I know what Rodgers can do, I’m not blind I see the games. I also know that should Rodgers come here his comments will get taken apart and scrutinized and that is something that gets taken into consideration not just by me but by anyone who is anyone. What more do you want CeeJay? Him talking is a major reason why so many fans don’t want him in Pittsburgh but for some reason me bringing that or anybody else bringing that up gets you in a foul mood for which I’m sorry but it’s something that matters.
And again, you change the subject, resort to personal attacks…
And completely fail to make an argument.
We’re done. I just really wanted to see you advance a claim, support it with evidence, and construct a logical line of reasoning. Or at least try. You can’t or won’t, so we’re done.
What do you want? I told you that I know what Rodgers is capable of but you choose to ignore it. I also said this comments about how the game went is also a factor not to me but to others but again you ignore that why? If it’s Rodger’s I can live with that but if it’s Mason the same thing applies, I’ll live with it. Do you get it now CeeJay?
I told you what I want. I want to see you “advance a claim, support it with evidence, and construct a logical line of reasoning.” You still haven’t done that, you’ve said “I know what Rodgers is capable of” but haven’t defined it, haven’t advanced any evidence that he’s still capable of anything other than throwing teammates and coaches under the bus, haven’t constructed a logical line of reasoning supported with evidence, or really offered anything other than insults and obfuscation.
The rebuttal to my claim that:
makes absolutely no sense, references nothing, and seems to have nothing to do with the discussion at hand, but you seem to believe it somehow it proves your point that I ignored whatever it is, even though you just now brought it up.
Word salad is not logical reasoning, it’s just noise, and your inability to connect even two propositions in a logical chain of evidence is flat out embarrassing.
Construct a logical argument. Advance a claim, support it with evidence, and connect that evidence to your claim. Don’t just spout random collections of words connected by insults and pretend it’s an argument.
These are the fundamental principles of argument, Rhetoric 101, and you are failing badly.
I don’t think mentoring a younger QB is his responsibility. I never understood where that notion even comes from. Unless I was considering coaching after I hang em up, I wouldn’t do it if I was him. Also, I don’t think I want his fingerprints on a young guy anyway, unless what he’s learning from Aaron is what happens if I’m an arrogant ass, and how to not be an arrogant ass.
Again, I concur with Jon above. I think the idea of “mentoring” younger players is far less involved and complicated than most people think. In the NFL world, I think at the very least it’s making yourself available to the young guys to bounce ideas or give advice or to show them the way. It’s being available to answer questions about the game at the pro level. To offer feedback when asked for by a young guy. I don’t think it’s that complex. And just like any other profession honestly, a work environment works best when everyone is doing everything in their power and circle to make sure everyone around them is performing at the highest level possible. I would think this would be even more critical in a professional sport culture. So, again, I don’t think it’s as complex as most people think it is. Just don’t be a douche basically. 😉
I don’t think this is compatible to a typical work environment. It’d be similar to the top salesman giving tips to a young salesman that is going to use those tips to take sales from said top guy. Not likely to happen. Rodgers gains nothing by spoon feeding Mason football advice and can lose his job to him. If he wants to take that role on awesome, but it should never be assumed that the #1 will just do that, nor should he be faulted for not wanting to.
I must have just been blessed my entire career in being surrounded by people that wanted me to succeed because they knew if I did, they would too.
That said Joe, I understand your point, but I think the professional football player that doesn’t want to help their very own teammate get better is short-sighted and lacks the confidence in their own ability that I would think is necessary in their profession to be worth a dang. Maybe some of them are not quite as confident as they seem to exude.
I understand what you’re saying too, and I too have been blessed with people that are / were willing to share knowledge. I have always made a point to pay it forward with many the youngster in my orbit because I owe it to the people that came before me to pass on the knowledge they shared with me. I am also in a job where we all benefit from bringing along the youngsters, and my standing is not threatened by how well they perform. It’s actually improved, and I get to extend my carrier.
Pro Football players really don’t have that luxury, so many don’t have self confidence to help the guy that’s next in line. I cant blame them, though. I can’t imagine what it’s like to reach the top of my earning potential, only to have a guy right there behind me eager to take my job if I make a mistake, or lose a step. Their time is short and they get replaced as soon as the front office thinks they can save a buck or get younger at the position. No team will keep a player on the roster because he’s a great guy that helps mentor young players. The real world values this (or should) but the NFL, not so much. They may make room on the staff for a guy they like, but his helmet is gone the minute it looks like he slipped. The real world also doesn’t have a roster limit, they can just keep both guys.
I understand this from the team side as well. They only have so much money, and pay a lot for a player to be tip top in every way. When he no longer is….that’s one of the reasons they call it Not For Long. Breeds a cut throat atmosphere.
100% my friend! 100%
Sure it is. A young person can supplant a tenured person in any vocation. If your young salesperson doubles the sales of the old one then the old one is out the door.
Which 8s why old one doesn’t share info.
Why stop at QBs. The logic should apply to all football players. Heck, why stop with football when virtually all vocations contain an “old guys help the young guys” element.
Are you really saying that experienced people should tell inexperienced people to “go fish” because the inexperienced ones might become better some day? That seems incredibly insecure to me. Was 4 time MVP Aaron Rodgers really so scared of Jordan Love that he felt a need to be a jackass to him? If so, Rodgers’ machismo is fake and he is a really a wuss inside.
I don’t like the thought of not paying our wisdom backwards.
The NFL is NOT like an ordinary job. I think this logic does apply to all football players. Some share some dont. Don’t judge untill you have a job making millions per year and your boss puts your successor on your hip pocket to learn how you do what you do.
Yes. He was and he is. He is incapable of recognizing the value and contributions of others. The world revolves around him.
Funny cause there were a lot of people including Packer Fans who hated the Love pick and felt the team should have taken a WR at that spot. The Rodgers/Love situation falls right in line with the Ben/Mason saga. Both teams had HOF QBs still playing at the top of their game and both teams take a QB they felt would be the future of the team and in the Packers case it worked out and for the Steelers it didn’t.
This QB debate on this site is also reminiscent of Brady and his last I guess 6-7 years with the Pats. The Pats drafted Jimmy G and Brissett as “replacements” for Brady. Go back through the archives of NFL articles and you’ll find how Brady forced Jimmy G out of NE and as I recall has Brady ever mentored or taught 1 of the young QB’s he had sitting behind him?
It’s easy for fans to say “Aaron was scared of Jordan Love” but it’s quite another for these same fans to be in the room and on the field when such events happen.
Knowing what we now know about Antonio Brown, leVeon Bell, etc….do/did we want them after we knew ALL the baggage? If your answer is yes, then you’re happy with Rodgers coming in as well. You think the talent is worth the hassle….
Coach T’s ability to keep the lid on all of the characters that he’s had on the team speaks volumes about his ability to control the locker room.
HOWEVER, I feel that Aaron Rodgers is the one guy who could actually upset the Apple cart on that. Having two Alpha male attitudes like that in the locker room is going to make for drama that the aforementioned guys, Brown and Bell, plus M Bryant, plus Big Ben, plus etc, etc, etc… , all couldn’t muster TOGETHER…
That Aaron Rodgers might be the first ever prospective Steeler to cause drama for the Steelers before actually becoming a Steeler speaks greatly to the theatrics that he embodies.
Cali Boy living up the movie life to the fullest! Theatrics galore! #DramaKing
When you are causing more drama than AB, that’s saying something!
Rodgers has left many of his partnerships with bridges on fire, and relationships ended – including with his own family. I wouldn’t want him even if the juice was worth the squeeze, but this guy doesn’t have any juice left. Hard pass from this GM. Draft a guy, and get another vet in here to backup Mason.
We are singing the exact same song here Joe!
Great piece Sadie. I absolutely agree! I prefer to roll with Mason and see where we go with an offense built on his skill set. Complete the plan (at least it strongly feels like a plan) the organization has set as it’s course and accumulate enough assets/draft capital to get your QB next year.
a true Pittsburgh Steelers fan, since the 70’s the Steelers have Mason Rudolph Aaron Rodgers can go play up in the Canadian Football League
I don’t really care about the money. They have cap space, and they aren’t going to give him more than two years, so I don’t see that as an issue. Was he MVP Rodgers last year? No but he was still pretty good. He almost threw for 4,000 yards with 28 TD’s. Considering he was coming off of an Achilles he needed some time to get back to full mobility. Everybody hits the wall, but I think he is worth the chance for two years. They really need to draft a lottery ticket type of guy. Someone with a super high ceiling potential. No reason to draft guys like Mason Rudolph types. I want someone that has some elite traits. Whether it is arm, speed, size, etc. If he washes out so be it and try again.
a true Pittsburgh Steelers fan, since 70’s like I have been saying the Steelers don’t need Aaron Rodgers or Kirk Cousins and Jalen Milroe from Alabama or Jaxon Dart from Ole Miss my drop to the Steelers at 21 and the Steelers have Mason Rudolph