We know the Pittsburgh Steelers want to win now, but their 2026 NFL Draft results suggest the team made some significant investments for the future. Players like Max Iheanachor and Gennings Dunker could be foundational pieces to the offensive line, while third-round pick Daylen Everette felt like a high-upside swing at cornerback with eventual starting potential down the line.
No selection felt more like a move for the future than Drew Allar, a raw Penn State quarterback in need of refinement but with the tools to succeed at the NFL level.
However, one insider suggests there might have been a more sinister agenda at play—one that involves Aaron Rodgers.
NFL insider Tom Pelissero spoke on The Rich Eisen Show, suggesting that the Steelers made some Rodgers-appeasing moves in the war room during the draft—moves that could help lure the aging quarterback to Pittsburgh for one more season.
"Everything the Steelers did in the draft may not have been designed for Aaron Rodgers, but certainly, if you were saying, ‘What might Aaron Rodgers want?’ A tackle, a guard who’s a barroom brawler, and a big slot receiver.
Those are three things that Aaron Rodgers likes. So everything seems to have been built in that direction.”
The Pittsburgh Steelers would be unwise to make draft decisions around Aaron Rodgers
It's one thing to let a franchise quarterback influence a team's decisions early in the NFL Draft; it's another thing entirely if a front office is making draft moves with the purpose of satisfying a 42-year-old quarterback who isn't even on the roster.
For obvious reasons, the Steelers can't make pivotal draft moves that impact the future of their team, and be swayed by their hopes of retaining Rodgers for one more season. We need to give them a little bit more credit than this.
While general manager Omar Khan and team president Art Rooney II made it clear that they would like to have Rodgers return for the 2026 season, there's no chance that the team's early draft moves were made with the number one priority of getting Rodgers back for one more year.
Instead of a sinister Rodgers agenda during the draft, it's much more likely the team identified some of their biggest positional weaknesses and looked to address them early. After hearing of Broderick Jones' injury setback after having spinal fusion surgery, it was no surprise to see Pittsburgh target an offensive tackle early in the 2026 draft.
Likewise, the wide receiver room didn't cut it last year, and they desperately needed a player (like Germie Bernard) who has a skill set that will complement DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. nicely. Bernard could work the slot and be a reliable option over the field in the passing game.
Though the Pittsburgh Steelers did seem to draft for need, their draft decisions felt more like moves to set up the future franchise quarterback for success than to appease Rodgers.
Aaron Rodgers could return to the Steelers for one final season, and maybe getting a tackle and a wide receiver early will help him make the decision to come back. But it's a stretch to believe that Khan and the front office made their draft decisions with the sole purpose of trying to lure Rodgers back to Pittsburgh.
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