It is still not expected Aaron Rodgers will join a team other than the Steelers this offseason. If he does, however, Pittsburgh will be in line for draft compensation.
Rodgers has received the UFA tender from the Steelers, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. Such a move is rare in the NFL, although there were two examples from the 2025 offseason. The Browns applied the UFA tender to Elijah Moore while the Chargers did the same with J.K. Dobbins.
Both players wound up signing with other teams, but they were factored into Cleveland and Los Angeles’ compensatory pick formulas along the way. The same will be true of Rodgers and the Steelers. With an outside deal not likely in his case, however, today’s news essentially serves as a guarantee Rodgers will either play for Pittsburgh in 2026 or retire. The team will have exclusive negotiating rights with the future Hall of Famer if he remains unsigned beyond July 22 while also being able to match any offer sheets which are signed prior to that date.
For the second year in a row, the Steelers have gone deep into the spring without certainty atop their QB depth chart. Rodgers’ one-year deal in 2025 seemed at first to set him up for retirement. Instead, the four-time MVP has left the door open to a 22nd NFL season, with Pittsburgh once again willing to accommodate him. Owner Art Rooney II aimed to have a firm commitment from Rodgers by mid-February, but that soft deadline passed. Shortly before the draft, it was learned clarity on this front would not emerge.
Pittsburgh went through this weekend’s event without Rodgers officially being in the fold. With veteran Mason Rudolph and 2025 sixth-rounder Will Howard already in the mix, the team selected Penn State’s Drew Allar in the third round. None of those passers will be seen as a threat to Rodgers if/when he arrives, but today’s procedural move further underscores the uncertainty surrounding this unique situation. Rodgers’ next campaign will begin at the age of 42, and a new Steelers accord would see him reunite with head coach Mike McCarthy.
The UFA tender is valued at 110% of a player’s 2025 salary. In Rodgers’ case, that means he will collect just over $15MM next season in the event he suits up for the Steelers. The team’s OTAs are set to begin on May 18, with mandatory minicamp taking place June 2-4. The matter of whether or not Rodgers will be under contract by that point remains a storyline to follow.
They should’ve drafted beck and be done with this scrub
They should have made a different plan, but no one should have drafted Beck higher than the first pick of the third round.
Beck is refuse. I don’t think Allar is any good either, but at least he has upside.
At this point, it’s laughable. Two years before he retired, they knew Roethlisberger was in decline. They likely knew Rudolph wasn’t the answer—never developed the kid anyway. In all these years, it’s been the Keystone Cops approach. Or Three Stooges.
I thought it was a delusional owner all this time. Bringing in retreads and insisting they were on the cusp of the Super Bowl. Having watched the draft it’s clear they have a GM who’s out of his depths, too
You know your organization is in trouble when you start looking more dysfunctional than the Pirates 🙂
There is a crazy dichotomy in the Pittsburgh Steelers fan base the last 10 years or so.
Camp A: Love Tomlin and the organization and tout the never has a losing season stat and saying “we’re always in the hunt”.
Camp B: Hated Tomlin and quoted the “Finish middle, draft middle, stay middle” line and wanted change.
Then they hired a coach that NO ONE wanted to hire and gave him FIVE YEARS. Who has 1 playoff win in his last 7 years coaching. He is essentially a carbon copy of Tomlin. Similar wining % career. Won a superbowl early followed by YEARS of middling and underperforming teams.
These two are the NFL equals to Doc Rivers. Win early and trade on past performance.
All the fanboys playing Sportsball Mashup must get all their news from tabloids, talk radio, and ESPN.
Just start Drew Allar…. Take the lumps and give him experience….hes the best of the 3 under contract
Really easy to see this coming, Rodgers is basically done as a NFL QB he is running on extreme fumes. Pittsburgh made this bed with Rodgers, they knew he was not going to lead them to a Super Bowl, they were desperate to get a QB and their bench was empty. Now they take Allar and where does this lead them, will they be in on the verge of a playoff team this season with Allar leading them or will they be on the list looking for a QB in the 2027 draft. The Steeler fans have to be saying where is our franchise QB it has been a few years since Big Ben. Does this Steeler management really have what it takes to get a franchise QB.
I’m a little confused about this respect for Allar beyond having the physical skills. I’ve watched countless Penn State games. What have I been missing? Because he hasn’t shown anything in big games other than the USC game that would lead me to believe he can jump right in
His drafting is somewhat humorous though. McCarthy spent the last few months talking up Howard in much the same way which now sounds like lip service.
Rudolph wouldn’t provide much of a drop off from what Rodgers offers now. The mushy middle in draft order again. It’s like Groundhogs Day.
This is a franchise that has an owner and front office that is delusional about where it is and has routinely passed on guys who probably could have learned, grown and been the answer at the position in favor of a revolving door of retreads.
enough from the clown