It didn't take long for Cameron Heyward to change his tune toward Aaron Rodgers. In roughly a week's time, Heyward went from refusing to cave to the diva quarterback to giving Rodgers a full endorsement as the signal-caller of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Last week on Heyward's Not Just Football Podcast, the Steelers star delivered a blunt message to Rodgers. Co-host Hayden Walsh then asked Heyward if he would go on a darkness retreat if it meant Rodgers would come to Pittsburgh.
"I ain’t doing that darkness retreat," Heyward said. "I don’t need any of that crap. Either you want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler, or you don’t. That simple; that’s the pitch. If you want me to recruit, that’s the recruiting pitch. Pittsburgh Steelers: if you want to be part of it, so be it. If you don’t, no skin off my back."
When Heyward joined Kyle Brant on Good Morning Football on Wednesday, he offered a very different response when asked about Rodgers potentially coming to Pittsburgh. The Steelers All-Pro issued a rebuttal.
"It was misconstrued," Heyward said on Good Morning Football. "From my point of view, I was asked the question, 'Would you go to the lengths of going to a darkness retreat to recruit Aaron Rodgers?' I said, 'I'm not doing that! The pitch is, if you want to be a Steeler, be a Steeler.' That's all it was. It wasn't that I don't like Aaron Rodgers or I'm against him.
Heyward continued by endorsing the four-time MVP quarterback as an option to lead the Steelers in 2025.
"I think when I look at our team right now, it would be really cool to have a guy like Aaron Rodgers," Heyward continued/ "But I can't be the guy who gets it over the finish line; I think he has to make those decisions for himself. Excited to see what happens."
Cameron Heyward understands the Pittsburgh Steelers' dire QB situation requires Aaron Rodgers
When Cam Heyward previously voiced his opinion on Aaron Rodgers, there were still a few options on the table. The Pittsburgh Steelers hadn't ruled out the possibility of a reunion with Russell Wilson, and Heyward wasn't interested in begging.
Fast forward one week, and the most tenured player on the Steelers understands the dire state of the quarterback situation in Pittsburgh. Wilson has inked a deal with the New York Giants, and the free-agent pool has run dry. Like it or not, Rodgers is the best remaining option at the position, and the 41-year-old gives the team a much better chance to succeed in 2025 than rolling with long-time NFL backup Mason Rudolph.
Steelers players have to be frustrated with the lack of answers at quarterback as we approach April, but what choice do they have at this point? The last thing they want to do is burn any bridges with a quarterback who could potentially help snap their winless eight-year drought in the playoffs.
Fans, coaches, and players alike now realize that Aaron Rodgers is the last line of defense from this team plummeting further into mediocrity, and Cameron Heyward made the right move by changing his tune on the best available free-agent quarterback.