Giants Sign DT Josh Tupou
The Giants worked out free agent Eddie Goldman on Tuesday, but they are now signing a different defensive tackle. The team has agreed to a deal with Josh Tupou, Art Stapleton of NorthJersey.com reports. The move will reunite the ex-Raven with head coach John Harbaugh.
The 6-foot-3, 350-pound Tupou spent most of the past two years on the Ravens’ practice squad. He appeared in six regular-season games in that span and recorded eight tackles and a sack.
Since Tupou entered the NFL undrafted in 2017, the majority of his experience has come with one of the Ravens’ AFC North rivals, the Bengals. As a member of the organization through 2023, the Colorado product was teammates with defensive tackle D.J. Reader for four years. The Giants signed Reader earlier this month.
Tupou played just seven games in his first two seasons, but he took on a much bigger role in the Bengals’ defense beginning in 2019. He started seven of 16 games that year and notched a career-high 27 tackles. While Tupou opted out of 2020 over COVID concerns, he returned to play a full 17-game slate the next year and pick up nine starts during an AFC title-winning season for Cincinnati. He played just 11 games in 2022, but Tupou registered 19 tackles and the first two sacks of his career then. In total, he has 94 tackles and three sacks in his 71-game, 23-start career.
For the Giants, the Tupou signing comes less than a week after Roy Robertson-Harris tore his Achilles in practice. Robertson-Harris’ season is already over, adding another question mark along the Giants’ interior line. He was a full-time starter last year, as was Dexter Lawrence, but the Giants traded the latter to the Bengals for the 10th overall pick in April’s draft. They will expect Reader and fellow established free agent signing Shelby Harris to help pick up the slack. Tupou, 2025 third-rounder Darius Alexander, Zacch Pickens, Leki Fotu, Sam Roberts and rookie sixth-rounder Bobby Jamison-Travis represent several of their other options.
49ers Revise Contracts For QB Mac Jones, C Jake Brendel
The 49ers have amended a pair of contracts. Quarterback Mac Jones and center Jake Brendel have agreed to revised deals, according to reports from Tom Pelissero of NFL Network and Spotrac.
Jones, who is entering the second season of a two-year, $7MM pact, is getting a $300K roster bonus after performing well as Brock Purdy‘s backup in 2025. He now stands to earn $3.55MM during the upcoming season and could make another $2.25MM in incentives, per Pelissero. Meanwhile, the 49ers converted $3.02MM of Brendel’s money into a signing bonus, opening up approximately $2.27MM in cap space. They have around $70MM to play with, which is easily the most in the NFL.
As the 15th overall pick in 2021, Jones impressed during his rookie season in New England. But after guiding the Patriots to a 10-7 record and a playoff berth that year, his performance declined significantly. The Patriots cut ties with Jones in 2024 when they traded him to the Jaguars for a sixth-round pick. After enduring another poor season while filling in for an injured Trevor Lawrence over seven starts in Jacksonville, Jones rebounded in his first year in San Francisco.
With Purdy out for eight games, the 27-year-old Jones helped the 49ers to a 5-3 record during a 12-win, playoff-bound season for the club. While throwing 13 touchdowns against six interceptions, Jones established new career highs in completion percentage (69.6), yards per attempt (7.4), passer rating (97.4) and QBR (62.3). Given that Purdy is entrenched atop the 49ers’ depth chart, Jones went into the offseason as a potential sell-high candidate. The 49ers reportedly set an “astronomical” asking price, but nobody bit. That’s OK with general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan, who have made it clear on multiple occasions that they believe the 49ers are a better team with Jones on their roster.
Brendel will count $3.14MM against the 49ers’ cap in 2026, the last season of a four-year, $16.5MM accord. He is also on track to remain on their books for $3.6MM during a void year in 2027. In the meantime, the soon-to-be 34-year-old will play his sixth season in San Francisco in 2026. As the 49ers’ No. 1 center since 2022, Brendel has started in 66 straight appearances. He had two absences last year, dashing his bid for a fourth full season in a row, but was effective when on the field. Brendel ranked as Pro Football Focus’ eighth-best center among 37 qualifiers.
Bears Host DE A.J. Epenesa
The Bears have not made any notable defensive end acquisitions this offseason, but they are “keeping tabs on potential options,” according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. A.J. Epenesa, who is among the established free agent veterans left at the position, worked out for the Bears last week, Biggs reports.
Epenesa, a 2020 second-round pick who spent his first six seasons in Buffalo, briefly came off the board when he agreed to sign with the Browns in late March. That deal collapsed as a result of a failed physical, and Epenesa is still looking for a team over two months later. The 27-year-old worked out for the Dolphins last month, but it is unclear whether they are considering signing him.
Although he couldn’t pass the Browns’ physical, Epenesa did not miss significant time with injuries as a member of the Bills. He played between 14 and 17 regular-season games each year in Buffalo, where he mostly served as a rotational player. Epenesa was a 13-game starter in 2024, but he combined for just six starts in his other five seasons as a Bill. The former Iowa Hawkeye has notched 53 quarterback hits, 24 sacks, 21 pass deflections and four interceptions in 91 games as a pro.
Epenesa racked up six to 6.5 sacks in each season from 2022-24, but the number dropped to 2.5 over 16 games last year. He also added 32 tackles, four PDs and a pair of picks while playing 44.6% of defensive snaps as a depth piece behind Greg Rousseau and Joey Bosa. He ended the campaign as Pro Football Focus’ 86th-ranked edge defender out of 119 qualifiers.
While the Bears’ turnover-happy defense helped the team to an NFC North title in 2025, the unit finished just 26th in sacks (35). Montez Sweat, who totaled a team-leading 10 sacks, remains atop the Bears’ defensive end group. Austin Booker, Dayo Odeyingbo and Shemar Turner are also among their returning options. Odeyingbo inked a three-year, $48MM pact with the Bears in March 2025, but the former Colt missed nine games with an Achilles tear and chipped in just one sack when healthy. The Bears expect Odeyingbo back for training camp, though they could still pick up Epenesa or someone else before the season opens.
Epenesa is part of a market that features better pass rushers in Bosa, Cameron Jordan, Jadeveon Clowney, and a couple of other former Bills teammates in Von Miller and Leonard Floyd (also an ex-Bear). He is likely to sign for less than each of them, especially after failing a physical. That could matter to a Chicago team that has around $6.46MM in effective cap space (via OverTheCap), which ranks 23rd in the league.
Vikings Notes: Adofo-Mensah, GM, Brandel
It looked like business as usual for the Vikings’ front office early in the winter. On the heels of a disappointing 9-8 campaign, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah met with the media on Jan. 13 to discuss the upcoming offseason. At the time, sources inside and outside the organization believed his job was safe, according to an ESPN report. But Vikings owners Zygi Wilf and Mark Wilf were discussing Adofo-Mensah’s future behind the scenes, and they elected to fire him on Jan. 30.
Almost four full months since they moved on from Adofo-Mensah, the Vikings have not named a replacement. That was the plan all along, as they indicated upon firing Adofo-Mensah that a search would begin after the draft in late April.
Executive vice president of football operations Rob Brzezinski led the Vikings’ front office through the most important parts of the offseason as their interim GM. He is now one of five finalists for Adofo-Mensah’s old job, joining outside assistant GMs Reed Burckhardt (Broncos), Terrance Gray (Bills), John McKay (Rams) and Nolan Teasley (Seahawks).
The Vikings are likely to hire someone within a “couple of weeks,” per The Athletic’s Alec Lewis, who leaves the door open for the team changing its power structure. That is something the Wilfs have been reluctant to do. If it happens, though, it may mean promoting Brzezinski to a president of football operations-type role and hiring, in Lewis’ words, a “personnel guy” to work under him. The Falcons did that earlier in the offseason when they created a president of football position for Matt Ryan and brought in Ian Cunningham as their GM.
If Minnesota takes a similar tack, it is worth pointing out Burckhardt and Gray are former Vikings employees who have past working experience with Brzezinski. That might give either a leg up if the plan is to keep Brzezinski, who has been in the Vikings’ front office since 1999. Sources believe Brzezinski will stick around in some capacity, Lewis reports.
Turning to on-field matters, Brzezinski and head coach Kevin O’Connell saw starting center Ryan Kelly retire before free agency began in early March. Kelly had another season left on his two-year, $18MM deal, but the longtime Colt walked away in the wake of a concussion-filled 2025. The Vikings considered addressing the position in free agency and the early rounds of the draft, Lewis notes, but nothing came together. The inactivity at center is a positive development for holdover Blake Brandel, who is the favorite to take over for Kelly.
A Viking since they selected him in the sixth round of the 2020 draft, the versatile Brandel has played all over the line and picked up 31 starts in 73 appearances. He hasn’t missed a game since 2022, but last year was the first time Brandel primarily lined up at center. With Kelly out for most of the season, Brandel made nine starts and finished as Pro Football Focus’ 23rd-ranked center among 37 qualifiers. The Vikings seem confident in Brandel’s chances of holding down center on a full-time basis. Otherwise, they would have done more than add Gavin Gerhardt, whom they drafted in the seventh round.
Dolphins S Dante Trader Jr. In Lead For Starting Job
Minkah Fitzpatrick, Ashtyn Davis and Ifeatu Melifonwu logged the most playing time among Dolphins safeties last year, but all three are now off the roster. The rebuilding Dolphins traded Fitzpatrick to the AFC East rival Jets a couple of days before the new league year began in March. Davis and Melifonwu hit free agency the same week, but both remain unsigned two-plus months later.
With Fitzpatrick, Davis and Melifonwu out the door, rookie head coach Jeff Hafley and defensive coordinator Sean Duggan have to find new regulars at the position. While training camp is still two months away, Dante Trader Jr. looks like the frontrunner for a starting job, according to Omar Kelly of the Miami Herald. Trader has taken “significant” snaps at OTAs and impressed in practice, per Kelly.
In what turned out to be his last draft as the Dolphins’ general manager, Chris Grier took Trader in the fifth round (No. 155) in 2025. The former Maryland Terrapin was fourth in the Dolphins’ safety pecking order in a three-start rookie season, but he got into all 17 games, combined for 681 snaps (419 on defense, 262 on special teams) and made 55 tackles.
Trader finished as Pro Football Focus’ 68th-ranked safety among 91 qualifiers, wedging him between Melifonwu (53rd) and Davis (82nd). As Kelly notes, a shoulder injury hampered Trader for a portion of his rookie campaign. That is no longer an issue, evidenced by Trader’s three-interception performance in a recent practice.
Previously the Packers’ defensive coordinator, Hafley turned to safeties Xavier McKinney and Evan Williams as full-time starters last season. There is far less certainty on the back end of Miami’s defense, but it looks as if Trader will seize a starting role. He is not competing against a particularly strong group of contenders.
The Dolphins’ other options include safety/linebacker Jordan Colbert and newcomers Lonnie Johnson Jr., Zayne Anderson, Omar Brown, Michael Taaffe and Louis Moore. Johnson, Anderson and Brown were all inexpensive free agent pickups. The Dolphins made an NFL-high 13 picks in last month’s draft, but they did not prioritize safety. Taaffe, a fifth-rounder, was their lone selection at the position. They added Moore as an undrafted free agent.
No Timeline For Steelers’ Broderick Jones
Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones is facing plenty of uncertainty as he enters the final season of his four-year rookie contract. While Jones was the Steelers’ starting left tackle for the first time in 2025, a neck injury ended his season in November and limited him to 11 games. The 6-foot-5, 311-pounder is now working back from spinal-fusion surgery, but he is unsure when he will return.
“They didn’t really give me a timeline,” Jones said (via Chris Harlan of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review). “They’re just monitoring it day by day, and we go from there.”
Jones’ surgery has been a major part of an eventful offseason for the former first-rounder. The Steelers traded up to select Jones 14th overall in 2023, but they have not seen enough to commit to him for the long haul. The team declined his $19.07MM fifth-year option for 2027 in April, the same month it drafted yet another first-round offensive tackle.
The Steelers were so confident they were going to pick receiver Makai Lemon 21st overall that they called the ex-USC star before they were on the clock. But the Eagles suddenly swooped in for Lemon in a trade-up to No. 20, dashing the Steelers’ plans. Pittsburgh then pivoted to former Arizona State right tackle Max Iheanachor.
The Steelers took Iheanachor after deploying Jones as a starter for most of his first three seasons. He logged perfect attendance in his first two years and racked up 27 starts on the right side along the way. The Steelers lost left tackle Dan Moore Jr. to the Titans in free agency after 2024, and they decided to shift Jones to the blind side as his replacement. It wasn’t a seamless transition, as Pro Football Focus ranked Jones’ performance an unimpressive 66th among 84 tackles and charged him with six sacks allowed. That continued a disappointing trend for Jones, who has never cracked PFF’s top 60 in a season.
Along with Jones and Iheanachor, the Steelers have Troy Fautanu in the fold as another recent first-round tackle. Fautanu, the 20th pick in 2024, took over as the club’s starting right tackle last year. He was a standout left tackle during his college career at Washington, though, and has gotten work on that side this offseason. A full-time shift is “up in the air,” according to Fautanu, but if it happens, it could relegate Jones to a backup role. That would depend on whether the Steelers are confident Iheanachor (or Dylan Cook) can start in Week 1. At the latest, Iheanachor should emerge as a full-time starter by 2027. It’s fair to say Pittsburgh didn’t draft him in the first round to sit the bench for multiple years.
To Jones’ credit, he has welcomed Iheanachor with open arms.
“I’m down to help Max wherever he needs me,” Jones told Harlan. “Because at the end of the day, all of us got to be ready.”
In a best-case scenario, Jones will be ready for training camp. That would give him a chance to retain a starting gig in what may end up as his last season as a Steeler. If the soon-to-be 26-year-old wins a job on either side and performs well in the wake of a significant injury, he could earn a nice second contract in free agency next March.
Poll: How Many Games Will Steelers Win In Aaron Rodgers’ Last Year?
Four-plus months after their season ended, the Steelers finally got an answer on quarterback Aaron Rodgers‘ future last weekend. Rodgers agreed to return on a second straight one-year deal, which came as a relief to a Pittsburgh team that saw free agent and trade options erode over the past couple of months. The 42-year-old future Hall of Famer announced on Wednesday that this will be his last season.
Rodgers won four MVPs during his heyday in Green Bay, where he played for head coach Mike McCarthy from 2006-18. He took home two of his MVPs and won his lone Super Bowl under McCarthy, who is now entering his first year as the Steelers’ head coach. Reluctant to rebuild in the wake of Mike Tomlin‘s January resignation, the Steelers turned to McCarthy in a win-now move. They famously never finished below .500 in any of Tomlin’s 19 seasons at the helm. They don’t expect that to change with Rodgers and McCarthy reuniting in 2026.
Tomlin stepped away from a team that went 10-7 and won the AFC North last season, but his decorated Pittsburgh tenure ended in unceremonious fashion. The Texans walked into the Steel City and bullied the Steelers in a 30-6 rout in the wild-card round. Rodgers, whom the Texans sacked four times, completed just 17 of 33 passes for 146 yards and an interception. He was far more effective than that during the regular season, which helps explain why the Steelers won their division. However, as he prepares for his 22nd season, Rodgers is much closer to an average starter than the QB demigod he was in Green Bay.
Although Father Time continues to gain on Rodgers, the Steelers saw him as their best choice throughout the offseason. With the expectation that Rodgers would eventually re-sign, they spent the past few months attempting to upgrade the roster around him. Adding capable receiving complements to DK Metcalf was a point of emphasis for general manager Omar Khan, who landed Michael Pittman Jr. in a trade with the Colts and selected Germie Bernard in the second round of the draft.
Twenty-six picks before he pulled in Bernard at No. 47, Khan tried to take former USC star wideout Makai Lemon 21st overall. However, while Khan was on the phone with Lemon, his plan fell through. The Eagles traded up to No. 20 to snag Lemon, leaving the Steelers to pivot to offensive tackle Max Iheanachor with their top choice. Iheanachor is beginning his career on the right side, while 2024 first-rounder Troy Fautanu could shift left as Broderick Jones recovers from neck surgery.
Elsewhere on offense, McCarthy reunited with another of his former players, running back Rico Dowdle, on a two-year, $12.25MM agreement in free agency. Dowdle was a Cowboy from 2020-24, McCarthy’s full five-year run as their head coach.
After rushing for his first 1,000-yard season in his last year in Dallas, Dowdle accomplished the feat again in 2025 with Carolina. He will give the Steelers a veteran replacement for Kenneth Gainwell, who signed a similar contract with the Buccaneers (two years, $14MM). Dowdle should feature prominently in a backfield that also includes Jaylen Warren, who just missed the 1,000-yard mark last season, as well as 2025 third-rounder Kaleb Johnson and rookie seventh-rounder Eli Heidenreich.
McCarthy, whose expertise is on the offensive side of the ball, brought in the experienced Patrick Graham as his defensive coordinator. The Steelers’ defense continues to boast plenty of household names as it begins life after Tomlin. T.J. Watt, Cameron Heyward, Alex Highsmith, Joey Porter Jr., Jalen Ramsey, Patrick Queen and Nick Herbig are among the holdovers from last year. The Steelers have since picked up a pair of new starters for their secondary in cornerback Jamel Dean and safety Jaquan Brisker.
Dean, a former Buccaneer who moved to Pittsburgh on a three-year, $36.75MM pact, will join Porter to comprise the Steelers’ top two outside corners. Although Dean missed three games in his seventh and final season in Tampa Bay, Pro Football Focus ranked his play a stellar fifth among 112 qualified corners.
Meanwhile, PFF rated Brisker a middling 45th among 91 safeties. The former Bear settled for a modest deal (one year, $5.5MM) to return to his native Pittsburgh in free agency. While Brisker has a troubling history of concussions, the four-year veteran logged his first 17-game/start season in 2025. If Brisker stays healthy again, the Steelers will expect him to provide an upgrade over departed safeties Kyle Dugger, Chuck Clark and Jabrill Peppers. They let all three of those defenders walk in free agency.
When PFR’s Sam Robinson previewed Pittsburgh’s offseason in March, he wrote: “There are worse places to be than the middle, but the Steelers have resided here for a long time. Will this offseason reveal a path toward a way out or deliver more of the same?”
As highlighted above, the Steelers have made some notable changes to their roster since the offseason commenced. Nevertheless, Vegas has set the Steelers’ over/under for wins at a middling 8.5. Falling short of that total would mark the Steelers’ first sub-.500 season since 2003. How do you expect them to fare in Rodgers’ last year? Have they done enough to stay ahead of division rivals Baltimore and Cincinnati? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
How many games will the Steelers win in 2026?
Bears: No ‘Viable’ Stadium Site In Chicago
As they continue to seek a new stadium site, it appears there is little hope of the Bears remaining in Chicago. In a statement issued Thursday, the Bears indicated they are considering just two potential sites for their new home. Both locations are outside of the city.
“The Chicago Bears have exhausted every opportunity to stay in Chicago, which was our initial goal,” the team said. “There is not a viable site in the city. As a result, the only sites under consideration are in Arlington Heights and Hammond.”
Arlington Heights is an Illinois suburb approximately 25 miles from Chicago. If the Bears end up there, it would be in a new indoor venue on 326 acres of land. Despite being out of state, Hammond, Ind., is similar in distance to Soldier Field as Arlington Heights. The Indiana site would also include a new domed stadium. Commissioner Roger Goodell called both options “viable” earlier this week (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk).
Last month, the Illinois House voted to approve a proposal to give tax breaks for megaprojects of $100MM or more. That would include a football stadium, which would bode well for the Bears staying in Illinois. But the Senate will also have to approve the legislation before adjourning on May 31, according to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. If the vote doesn’t pass, the Bears will likely go to Indiana, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.
Bears president and CEO Kevin Warren wants the team to pick a site by late spring or early summer, per Finley. Warren accompanied Bears chairman George McCaskey on a mid-April visit to Hammond, where they met with Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. Although the franchise has played in Illinois since 1920, McCaskey said Bears fans “would get used to” Indiana (via Finley). Because Hammond is within 75 miles of downtown Chicago, the Bears – not the Indiana-based Colts – already own marketing rights there.
The Bears’ current home, Soldier Field, opened in 1924. It is now the oldest stadium in the NFL by far. The Bears began play there in 1971. Fifty-five years later, their time at Soldier Field is nearing an end. Depending on how the Illinois Senate votes on May 31, the Bears’ days in the state may also be numbered.
Chargers Could Re-Sign WR Keenan Allen
Wide receiver Keenan Allen has played all but one of his 13 NFL seasons with the Chargers. Then based in San Diego, the Bolts took Allen in the third round of the 2013 draft. He turned into one of the best players in franchise history. Allen ranks first among Chargers in catches (985), second in yards (11,307) and third in receiving touchdowns (63).
After spending 2024 in Chicago, where he racked up 70 of his 1,055 career receptions, Allen reunited with the Chargers on a one-year, $8.52MM last August. Allen went on to average a career-low 9.6 yards per catch in his first career 17-game season, but he led the team in receptions (81) and targets (122). He also pulled in four touchdowns.
Allen returned to free agency back in March, but he is once again unsigned late in the spring. The Chargers have not ruled out a new deal for the 34-year-old, though.
In a Thursday appearance on Up & Adams, Chargers general manager Joe Hortiz told Kay Adams that the “door is not closed” on bringing Allen back. Hortiz revealed he has had “some communication with [Allen’s] representation.”
While Hortiz is not ruling out another go-around with Allen, he noted the Chargers want to let their current receivers “grow and develop.” In his three drafts atop the Chargers’ front office, Hortiz has added Ladd McConkey (2024) and Tre Harris (2025) in the second round, Brenen Thompson in the fourth round (2026) and Keandre Lambert-Smith in the fifth round (’25). Hortiz also exercised Quentin Johnston‘s fifth-year option for 2027 earlier this offseason.
Like Allen, McConkey carries significant experience in the slot. As things stand, he and Johnston are the Chargers’ top two at the position. The team also has a couple of capable pass-catching tight ends in Oronde Gadsden and recent free agent pickup David Njoku, further adding to quarterback Justin Herbert‘s options. As a fifth-round rookie last year, Gadsden far exceeded expectations during a 49-catch, 664-yard campaign. Meanwhile, although he took a backseat to Browns third-rounder Harold Fannin in 2025, Njoku notched 33 receptions and four scores in 12 games.
The Chargers still have over $45MM in cap space, giving them plenty of room to re-sign Allen. Even if Allen does not end up as a member of the Chargers’ receiving corps in 2026, he should be able to find a taker before the season. For now, he and other established wideouts like Stefon Diggs, Tyreek Hill, Deebo Samuel and DeAndre Hopkins are in limbo.
Aaron Rodgers Plans To Retire After 2026
It appears Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will ride off into the sunset after the 2026 season. Meeting with the media on Wednesday, Rodgers revealed that he will only play one more year (via Brooke Pryor of ESPN).
“Yes,” said Rodgers when asked if this will be his last season.
It is worth pointing out that Rodgers made similar comments last June, a couple of weeks after the former Packer and Jet ended a protracted trip to free agency to join the Steelers. It was a similarly drawn-out process this spring, but Rodgers finally agreed to return last weekend for a guaranteed $22MM. Rodgers stated that he made the decision after last month’s draft, adding he has been in Pittsburgh since early May (via Pryor). The four-time MVP and future Hall of Famer is now in line to play his 22nd season at the age of 42 (he’ll turn 43 in December).
Rodgers’ respect for longtime head coach Mike Tomlin influenced his decision to sign with Pittsburgh in 2025. The two went on to form a strong connection in a 10-7, AFC North-winning campaign for the Steelers. Rodgers did not resemble his all-world Green Bay self, but he bounced back from a couple of forgettable Jets seasons to win 10 of his 16 starts. He completed 65.7% of passes (in line with his career mark of 65.1), tossed 24 touchdowns against just seven interceptions, and posted a respectable 94.8 traditional rating.
While the regular season was a success for the Rodgers-led Steelers, the franchise extended its playoff losing streak to seven games. Led by a ferocious defense, Houston went into Pittsburgh in the wild-card round and crushed the Steelers, 30-6. Tomlin resigned shortly after that. It appeared Rodgers would follow Tomlin out the door, but then the Steelers hired Mike McCarthy as their head coach. McCarthy held the same position in Green Bay from 2006-18. He and Rodgers won their only Super Bowl together, and the QB also took home two of his MVP awards in that span.
Rodgers told reporters Wednesday that he suggested McCarthy to Steelers general manager Omar Khan after Tomlin stepped down (via Pryor). The QB and coach were in communication over the past few months.
“There is a full aspect circle that piqued my interest of coming back,” Rodgers said of reuniting with McCarthy (via Mark Kaboly of The Pat McAfee Show).
Tomlin never posted a sub-.500 season in any of his 19 years at the helm, and he ended his Pittsburgh tenure with three straight playoff berths. The Steelers will expect similar regular-season results in McCarthy’s first year and Rodgers’ last, though it will go down as a disappointment if they are once again immediately dispatched in the playoffs. The Steelers have not won a postseason game since January 2017, which has led to increased frustration from their fan base.
With Rodgers’ career nearing an end, the Steelers may have to shop for a starting signal-caller yet again next offseason. That will depend on how much faith they have in 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard and rookie third-rounder Drew Allar. Since Ben Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 campaign, Pittsburgh has been unable to find a long-term answer at the game’s foremost position.
The Steelers spent a 2022 first-rounder on Kenny Pickett, but he lasted just two years with the organization. After Pickett flamed out, they brought in Russell Wilson and Justin Fields as starting options in 2024. Despite making the playoffs that year, the Steelers were not impressed enough to bring Wilson or Fields back for a second season. That led them to Rodgers, who will go down as a two-year starter for the franchise.
Rodgers will enter his final season fourth all-time in touchdown passes and fifth in both yards and completions. He is 13 TD tosses from 540, which would move him past Peyton Manning for third on the list. He will also have a chance to become just the sixth QB to ever start a game at age 43 or older (via James Palmer of Bleacher Report).