We've reached the quarter mark of the 2025 NFL season, and the Pittsburgh Steelers are back to the drawing board during their early Week 5 bye. While the Steelers have plenty of adjustments to make and things to work on this week, it looks like most of Pittsburgh's offseason moves are paying off... and Mike Tomlin can already feel vindicated in his quarterback decision.
It was Tomlin's call to bench Justin Fields after six games last season and go with veteran Russell Wilson. The Steelers opted to retain neither quarterback for the 2025 season, instead holding out hope for a verbal agreement with Aaron Rodgers.
Now, after just four weeks of the NFL season, Wilson has been benched by the New York Giants, and Fields' New York Jets are off to an 0-4 start (though he did miss one game). It's hard to argue that Rodgers wasn't the better choice at quarterback during the 2025 offseason than Wilson or Fields.
But there was one option on the market that would have been better.
Sam Darnold would have been a better QB option for the Pittsburgh Steelers than Aaron Rodgers in 2025
The highest-paid free agent quarterback of 2025 was none other than Sam Darnold. And he's already showing why he was worth every penny.
In Week 2, the new Seattle Seahawks quarterback embarrassed the Steelers on their own turf—throwing for 295 yards and two touchdowns on 8.9 yards per attempt in the 31-17 road win. But Darnold only got better from there.
In Weeks 3 and 4, the Seahawks combined to score 67 points as Darnold averaged over 10 yards per pass attempt in this stretch. Though both Darnold and Rodgers helped lead their team to 3-1 records entering Week 5, Darnold's performance has been more efficient and more impressive.
Though Darnold has fewer touchdown passes than Rodgers (five compared to eight), the Seahawks' quarterback also has one fewer interception (2 to 3), more passing yards (905 to 786), averages more yards per attempt (9.1 to 7.3), and has a better passer rating (106.5 to 102.6).
Beyond the raw stats, Darnold has a higher EPA than Rodgers after four weeks, per ESPN analytics, while tiers are separating their overall PFF grades. Darnold's 91.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus ranks third among 38 qualifying quarterbacks, while Rodgers' 50.4 PFF grade ranks 37th.
None of this should be surprising after what we witnessed last season.
In 2024, Sam Darnold led the Minnesota Vikings to a 14-3 record while throwing for 4,319 yards. Darnold's 35 touchdown passes were more than former Steelers star Ben Roethlisberger ever had in a single season.
Since his final season with the Carolina Panthers in 2022, Darnold has quietly led his teams to a combined record of 21-7. Meanwhile, Rodgers only managed to help the Jets to a 5-12 record last season.
The biggest difference is their age and what's left in the tank. While a 41-year-old Rodgers is hoping to have enough gas left in the tank by the end of the season (and potentially into the postseason when he will be 42), Darnold is just 28 years old and entering the prime of his quarterback career.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans have to be happy with what they've seen so far from Aaron Rodgers in his old age, but at the quarter mark of the season, it's clear that Sam Darnold would have been the one available quarterback option better for Pittsburgh during the 2025 offseason.