I don't know about you, but when the Steelers signed Aaron Rodgers during the offseason, I was cautiously optimistic that we would get the Aaron Rodgers that we wanted and, frankly, needed. I'm not so sure we are seeing that product on the field.
Don't get me wrong. Rodgers is a lock for the Hall of Fame and justifiably so, but, as of right now, Rodgers is on the decline as Father Time is catching up to him, as he does with all of us. If you're not a professional athlete, it's an inevitable and acceptable path.
If you're a professional athlete, the path is inevitable, but the acceptance of that path is met with stubbornness and consternation. I can only imagine that an athlete who has played at the highest level for as long as Rodgers has played would not simply acquiesce and say, "Oh well, I guess I just can't do it anymore".
The Pittsburgh Steelers' decision on Aaron Rodgers for the 2026 season has become crystal clear
Let's interject some facts into our conversation because my opinion is just that, my opinion, and it really doesn't matter to the Steelers organization what my opinion is. Through more than half of the 2025 season, Rodgers has a winning record as the starting quarterback, has nearly a sixty-seven percent completion rating, and has thrown for a shade under two thousand yards.
Those statistics merit optimism; however, Rodgers has thrown seven INTs, which, compared to the nineteen TD passes he has thrown, doesn't sound bad. He has thrown at least two interceptions in a single game multiple times thus far in the 2025 season, and that is not good.
Rodgers' passer rating is really good at almost ninety-eight percent, but his total quarterback rating or QBR is around forty-four percent, which is not good. Let's just call it what it is. Another statistic that I would argue is as important as any of the aforementioned is this: How does Rodgers compare to his peers?
Rodgers is slightly above the middle of the pack, as it were, statistically speaking. So, not great, but not terrible, but the 2025 Steelers need a great Aaron Rodgers. After all the offseason moves we made, I think it's fair to say that we were in the "win-now" mindset.
READ MORE: Steelers officially have a massive Aaron Rodgers problem
We traded away our most talented receiver after acquiring a talented receiver in his own right, but, thus far, DK Metcalf is being outshone by George Pickens by a considerable margin. Pickens is near the top of the crop of wide receivers in both receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
Metcalf is near the bottom of that ladder in terms of receiving yards, but is in the top third in terms of receiving touchdowns. The reality for the Steelers and for Rodgers is this: If Metcalf can't get open or doesn't get open for whatever reason, there is a precipitous drop-off in options.
On one hand, the Steelers are failing Rodgers, but the flip side of that coin is that Rodgers is failing the Steelers. If we believe that to be the case, the decision for the Steelers heading into the 2027 season is an easy one. Roll with Mason Rudolph and either draft or sign a quarterback to compete with Will Howard for the backup spot, or potentially mortgage the future to draft a quarterback who will ostensibly become our next franchise quarterback.
As someone who witnessed the last pass Terry Bradshaw threw to the drafting of Ben Roethlisberger, I can tell you the decades between those two franchise quarterbacks were long and not very joyful. One thing is certain. We cannot re-sign a soon to be forty-two year old quarterback in the hopes that he will bring us to the promised land.