No “Change Of Heart” Between Steelers, Aaron Rodgers
The Steelers raised some eyebrows when they placed the rarely used unrestricted free-agent tender on Aaron Rodgers the other day. It was the timing of the move that was most noteworthy, as the Steelers had just completed a draft where they used a third-round pick on Penn State quarterback Drew Allar.
[RELATED: Steelers Place UFA Tender On Aaron Rodgers]
However, the move doesn’t signal that Rodgers’ decision will unfold one way or the other. Sources told Mark Kaboly that it’s still “status quo” on the Rodgers/Steelers front, and the team’s decision to slap the QB with the UFA tender doesn’t indicate “a change of heart by either side.” Steelers president Art Rooney II conveyed a similar sentiment while speaking with NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero this week, attributing the move to the potential compensation Pittsburgh would get should Rodgers suddenly sign elsewhere.
“We alerted Aaron and his representative that we were going to do it, and so not a real big deal,” Rooney said. “Just something that in the unlikely event he goes somewhere else, we are eligible for a comp pick.”
While Rooney cites the potential compensation, the decision effectively means Rodgers will either play for the Steelers in 2026 or retire. The team will be able to match any offer sheets signed before July 22, and they’ll then have exclusive negotiating rights after that date. If Rodgers ultimately commits to the tender, then he’ll lock himself in to just over $15MM in earnings for 2026.
Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com views the situation a bit differently, noting that the UFA tender decision is “reason enough for Rodgers to be upset with the situation” and “reinforces the possibility that the Steelers are trying to get Rodgers to be the one to choose not to continue the relationship.” While the two worked together to join forces last offseason, Florio notes that the Steelers have essentially taken away Rodgers’ ability to “retain full freedom” on his future this time around. This could prove to be much ado about nothing, but it is notable that the Steelers were quick to utilize the little leverage they had in this situation.
As for the timeline for a potential resolution, Rooney expressed optimism that a deal would be completed in the next few weeks. At the same time, the executive acknowledged that he expected this saga to have already been completed.
“We’ve been in contact with Aaron on a regular basis,” Rooney said (via Pelissero). “He’s been keeping us up to date on his plans. Even though I thought it probably would have been concluded by now, I think we will come to a conclusion here in the next few weeks.”
Steelers Place UFA Tender On Aaron Rodgers
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.
Mike Tomlin Addresses Steelers Resignation Decision
Mike Tomlin‘s Steelers tenure came to an end this winter when he resigned. The Super Bowl winner will spend the 2026 season trying his hand at broadcasting.
Tomlin informed the team of his decision shortly after Pittsburgh’s wild-card loss. He declined to offer public remarks on the matter until Sunday night, when it was officially announced Tomlin will work as an analyst for NBC next season. The new gig will see him travel to the location of each week’s Sunday Night Football broadcast instead of remaining in studio.
“It’s probably not an overnight decision,” Tomlin said during an interview with new colleague Maria Taylor (h/t ESPN’s Brooke Pryor). “But it’s probably not something that I could articulate or share with people. There’s a loneliness with leadership. I just thought it was a good time for me, personally. And by that, I mean just where I am in life. And I thought it was a good time for the organization, to be quite honest with you. We didn’t have a lot of success in the playoffs in recent years.”
The Steelers’ most recent postseason victory came in 2016. Finding a viable Ben Roethlisberger successor has proven to be challenging over the years, while a veteran-laden defense has fallen short of expectations on more than one occasion in the playoffs. Tomlin added some of Pittsburgh’s most experienced players are “worthy of the excitement and the optimism associated with new leadership.”
Mike McCarthy is now in place as the Steelers’ head coach. The former Packers Super Bowl winner spent five years with the Cowboys before he was out of coaching in 2025. A deal with his hometown team will see the 62-year-old return to the sidelines as Pittsburgh hopes to make a playoff run. The team’s quarterback situation is once again unclear deep into the offseason, with Aaron Rodgers yet to re-sign. Playing for Tomlin was part of the appeal for the four-time MVP, who spent much of his career previously working with McCarthy in Green Bay.
“I just think, Aaron, I just think being around him for the 12 months that I’m around him, he’s got a love affair with the game of football and not only the game, but the process, the informal moments, the development of younger guys, the interaction with teammates,” Tomlin added when asked about Rodgers. “And certainly he is still capable and in really good shape. And so I think at the end of the day, he’ll play football.”
Tomlin, just 54 despite having a 19-year run as a head coach to his name, had long been mentioned as a candidate to take up broadcasting. It soon became clear in the wake of his resignation decision that 2026 would not be spent on the sidelines in his case. A potential return to coaching on Tomlin’s part will of course be a key talking point leading up to next year’s hiring cycle.
Aaron Rodgers Unlikely To Inform Steelers Of Plans Prior To Draft
The week of the 2026 draft has arrived, and the Steelers are once again unsure of whether or not their presumed starting quarterback will be in the fold by the start of the season. The future of Aaron Rodgers remains uncertain at this time, and clarity does not appear to be imminent.
Rodgers has been in communication with head coach Mike McCarthy and general manager Omar Khan during recent weeks, but NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero report a formal assurance of suiting up for 2026 has yet to be provided. Pittsburgh is not expected to know Rodgers’ intentions for certain until after the upcoming draft. Owner Art Rooney II previously tapped the draft as a checkpoint for finding out more on this front, but it appears that will not be the case.
The Steelers had hoped to receive clarity with respect to Rodgers in mid-February, which would have been an earlier timeline than in 2025. Instead, another wait lasting deep into the offseason has taken place and it is set to continue. Pelissero points to the start of OTAs as a logical time for Rodgers to make his return to the organization and participate in on-field work. For now, the Steelers are set to begin spring practices without the four-time MVP in the fold.
That will leave Will Howard to take first-team reps this week. The 2025 sixth-rounder has drawn praise from McCarthy and others, although a second Rodgers campaign would leave him short on opportunities to develop in advance of the 2027 offseason when Pittsburgh will need to decide on whether or not a starting-caliber QB addition is necessary. Veteran Mason Rudolph is also in the fold.
Rodgers came into the 2025 season thinking it would be his last. Even with Mike Tomlin stepping aside, the door has remained open to a reunion between Rodgers and McCarthy. The two enjoyed a successful tenure in Green Bay, and McCarthy has welcomed the possibility of spending another year together with the Steelers.
Rodgers is 42, and while the future Hall of Famer offered stability under center in 2025 he would not be expected to operate at level matching his peak years in the event of a Pittsburgh return. It remains a distinct possibility that one will take place, but the team is positioned to once again enter the draft without being sure of Rodgers’ future.
Steelers Expected Aaron Rodgers Decision In Mid-February, Continue To Wait On QB
In an eerily similar offseason to 2025, the Steelers continue to wait on Aaron Rodgers. This time, however, the team did not seem to expect the process to drag on like it has.
While Rodgers went into the 2025 season expecting it to be his last, the aging great changed his tune and has been talking to Mike McCarthy and Omar Khan this offseason. But no deal is in place. The Steelers have also not heard for certain whether Rodgers will indeed return for a 21st season, and the delay is approaching the two-month mark.
The Steelers expected to hear from Rodgers on his future around mid-February, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. After nothing emerged, a new loose deadline placed free agency as the next window. When Rodgers did not let his 2025 employer know about his interest in a second season at that point, Art Rooney II pointed to the draft as the next point in which the team expected to find out the future Hall of Famer’s plans.
Rodgers, 42, did not sign with the Steelers until just before mandatory minicamp last year. The quarterback cited personal reasons at the time for the wait. Although Rodgers would seemingly be able to reassimilate into McCarthy’s offense fairly easily — even if the veteran HC has made tweaks since his Green Bay years — Pittsburgh will be hosting the draft and may be in the QB market.
Ty Simpson has come up as a potential Pittsburgh option. It would make sense for the Steelers to strongly consider Simpson at No. 21, seeing as they have not finished below .500 since 2003 and annually lack access to drafts’ top QB prospects, but multiple reports have pointed to the team being more likely to avoid that path. The Steelers passed on Jaxson Dart last year, something the Giants expected when they did not trade in front of them. It was viewed as likely by that point Rodgers would join the then-Mike Tomlin-led team. Tomlin’s presence drove Rodgers to Pittsburgh, and while Rooney expected the HC’s exit to impact the QB’s future with the team, McCarthy being tabbed as the successor pried the door back open.
Kirk Cousins loomed as a possible backup option last year, though the Falcons ended up keeping him out of trades (as they wanted an acquiring team to pick up a large chunk of his 2025 compensation), and Schefter adds the veteran also loomed as the Steelers’ likely fallback option behind Rodgers this offseason. As the Steelers have waited out Rodgers once again, Cousins signed with the Raiders.
Jimmy Garoppolo remains unsigned, as does 2024 Steeler starter Russell Wilson (who hoped to re-sign in 2025 but did not draw much Steelers interest). Beyond that duo, the free agent market consists of backup or third-string options following Cousins’ Las Vegas commitment.
The Steelers will continue to develop 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard, and Mason Rudolph has one year remaining on his contract. Based on reporting to date, it would surprise if Rodgers did not reprise his role as Pittsburgh’s starter. Still, the former Packers and Jets starter has gone from being “90% retired” as of winter 2023 to potentially playing four more seasons. That might be a stretch, injecting more risk into the Steelers’ strategy.
The Steelers have their eggs in this basket once again. While that provides a decent indication Rodgers will return, the team passing on Simpson and then seeing a Rodgers retirement commence will create a potentially embarrassing situation.
Bo Nix Recovery Timetable Ahead Of Schedule; OTAs Return Expected
Dealt one of the tougher blows in recent playoff history, the Broncos saw their chances at a Super Bowl LX berth lessened by Bo Nix‘s ankle fracture. But the organization is not concerned about its starting quarterback’s long-term health.
Nix is viewed as ahead of schedule in his recovery from the injury, Broncos GM George Paton said (via 9News’ Mike Klis). The third-year QB is expected to be full go by the time the Broncos’ offseason program begins in early May, Klis notes. CEO Greg Penner also proclaimed Nix ahead of schedule this week at the league meetings. The 25-year-old passer has been on track for an OTAs return since January.
This is a critical year for the Broncos, whose extension window with Nix opens in 2027. The team saw a prime opportunity to book a Super Bowl berth go by the wayside when it was revealed following an overtime divisional-round win Nix would be out the rest of the way because of the ankle injury suffered on an OT designed run. Jarrett Stidham enjoyed moments early in the AFC title game, but a costly fumble preceded a blinding snowstorm, limiting the backup in a 10-7 Patriots road win.
Nix’s injury had moved the point spread considerably, making the Pats favorites in Denver. A notable back-and-forth between Nix and Sean Payton — regarding information the coach shared about his passer’s injury past and whether he was predisposed to suffer an ankle malady — did commence, but the Broncos have QB certainty for the first time since Peyton Manning‘s retirement.
An unusual rumor did surface Wednesday morning, with Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio indicating Aaron Rodgers was on the radar to visit the Broncos due in part to potential concerns Nix will not be 100% by Week 1. This would be a wildly unexpected turn of events based on a number of factors, and Klis was quick to shoot down the prospect of the 42-year-old quarterback being under consideration. NFL insider Jordan Schultz added Nix is not expected to have any limitations when the Broncos’ offseason program begins. Nix had not missed a start in his NFL career until January’s AFC championship game.
The Broncos were certainly interested in Rodgers in 2021, as the then-reigning MVP’s standoff with the Packers soon placed Denver as the most likely destination in the event Green Bay caved to his aim of a trade. The Broncos also appeared to be waiting on Rodgers in 2022, when the Russell Wilson trade surfaced on the same day the Packers extended their longtime starter. But the successful Nix investment has created distance from this turbulent period in Broncos QB history.
Denver has its same quarterback room returning for 2026, with Stidham under contract for one more season and Sam Ehlinger re-signing on a one-year deal worth $2MM ($1MM guaranteed). No one other than the Steelers has been closely linked to Rodgers this offseason. The Steelers expect a Rodgers resolution by the draft.
Steelers Expecting Aaron Rodgers Resolution Before Draft
While Aaron Rodgers intends to take his time deciding on his status for the 2026 campaign, the Steelers are anticipating some clarity sooner than later. While speaking with reporters today, owner/president Art Rooney II acknowledged that the organization expects an answer from Rodgers before the NFL draft, per Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
While Rodgers seemed destined to join the Steelers last offseason, it took the quarterback until June to finally sign a contract. Rooney said the franchise isn’t expecting to wait around nearly as long this year.
“When I talked to him and Omar [Khan] talked to him, he told us he wasn’t going to take as long this year as he did last year [to make a decision],” Rooney said. “I’m not 100% sure what that means, but I expect something before the draft.”
The Steelers are expecting a quicker resolution this offseason because there aren’t as many (if any) suitors for the veteran QB. While the Raiders were mentioned as a fallback option, it’s always been assumed that Rodgers will either re-sign with Pittsburgh or hang up his cleats. While there was some speculation that the 42-year-old may want his own clarity from the draft, it’s sounding like the team’s first-year additions won’t have any influence on Rodgers’ final decision.
Also working in the Steelers’ favor is the status of Mike McCarthy, who the Steelers hired to replace long-time head coach Mike Tomlin. McCarthy and Rodgers obviously have a relationship dating back from their time in Green Bay, and it’s believed that the addition will ultimately convince the QB to re-up with the franchise. McCarthy spoke with reporters this week and said he’s spoken with Rodgers “every couple of days,” adding that he’s “comfortable with the dialogue that’s occured.”
“Just like they always are, life, football, what’s going on at the facility,” McCarthy said of his conversations with Rodgers (via ESPN’s Brooke Pryor). “So he’s really engaged with what’s going on. … I would just say he’s in a very positive space. We’ll just continue to engage in conversations.”
While the Steelers seem to be counting on Rodgers to be under center in 2026, that won’t stop them from pursuing other players at the position. When asked if the organization would consider selecting a QB in the draft, Khan told reporters that “all options are on the table.”
Raiders A Fallback Option For Aaron Rodgers?
When the Steelers replaced Mike Tomlin with former Packers coach Mike McCarthy, it seemingly increased the chances that Aaron Rodgers would return for a second season in Pittsburgh. If not, the only other logical option would be for the quarterback to call it a career. While those two choices still represent the likeliest paths, there could be a third fallback option for the future Hall of Fame QB.
[RELATED: QB Aaron Rodgers’ Steelers Decision Not Imminent]
An executive told Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom.com that the Raiders could end up being an option for Rodgers if things don’t work out in Pittsburgh. That source noted that Rodgers wants to be a definitive starter wherever he signs, and considering those starting opportunities are quickly drying up, the veteran QB may have no choice but “to get something done with Tom Brady” and the Raiders. At the same time, the source noted that a deal would naturally be dependent on the Raiders actually wanting the 42-year-old.
We heard earlier this month that a resolution wasn’t imminent, and La Canfora notes that Rodgers hasn’t shown any urgency to make a decision. For what it’s worth, the Steelers haven’t done anything to address the position this offseason and are clearly open to welcoming back Rodgers for another season.
Of course, the team will eventually like clarity at their most important position. Armed with the No. 21 pick, the draft may prove to be a decisive moment for the franchise. La Canfora notes that Kirk Cousins is also viewed as a “viable option,” although the team would obviously prefer to maintain some continuity (and provide some familiarity for McCarthy) via Rodgers.
The Raiders are all but certain to take Indiana QB Fernando Mendoza with the first-overall pick. The organization would presumably want to kick off that era of their franchise ASAP, but adding Rodgers to the mix would change the equation. There’s some merit to letting the young quarterback redshirt behind the iconic signal caller, although Rodgers’ win-now mentality could also run counter to the team’s developmental priorities.
Ultimately, the most likely path sees Rodgers returning to the Steelers for another season. As Rodgers considers his future, he’s presumably assuming that he’ll be welcomed back to Pittsburgh. If the organization suddenly decides to pivot and Rodgers decides he wants to continue playing, the Raiders could emerge as one of his only options.
Alabama QB Ty Simpson Projected To Steelers?
We’ve gotten through just the first week of free agency, and already a number of teams with question marks at quarterback have found a solution. A thin draft class at the position necessitated some proactive movement by a couple of teams in free agency to fill the role behind center, clearing things up a bit as we start to look forward to the 2026 NFL Draft. 
It seems a foregone conclusion at this point that the Raiders will be selecting Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the No. 1 overall pick next month. Past that, it’s unclear how many other passers, if any, will hear their names called in the first round. Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson is widely seen as the QB2 behind Mendoza and likely the only other college arm worth taking Day 1. These factors usually depend on necessity, so how needy are today’s NFL teams for a rookie quarterback?
The Dolphins, Falcons, and Vikings are three teams who opted to go the free agency route to address the position. Miami released Tua Tagovailoa after six years with the team and opted to sign free agent Malik Willis off a two-year stint as a backup in Green Bay. Atlanta quickly picked up the Dolphins’ scraps, signing Tagovailoa to the veteran minimum to compete with their other lefty quarterback in an open competition. Minnesota chose a similar route, bringing in Kyler Murray after his release from Arizona.
Obviously, there’s a chance that none of the three situations work out. Willis has only started six games in his career, Tagovailoa just turned in the worst season of his career, and Murray has missed over half the season twice in the last three years due to injury. And while signing these free agent options could stand every chance to turn things around, as well, it serves another positive purpose. Signing these quarterbacks allows these three teams to kick the can down the road to next year’s draft class or maybe even the class after that, in hopes of a more QB-rich group.
Looking at the current QB landscape around the NFL, it seems there are perhaps four teams for whom it would make sense to draft a quarterback this year — not counting the Raiders. These are teams that currently roster (or will likely roster) a veteran quarterback who can start while a drafted rookie is developed until they are ready to step in. These teams would be the Cardinals, Browns, Jets, and Steelers. Technically, the Rams could fit in here, as well, but as long as Matthew Stafford is playing at an MVP level and keeping the team in contention, Los Angeles isn’t likely to use a top pick on a passer.
Even between those four teams, the Cardinals will see veteran Jacoby Brissett return alongside newly signed free agent Gardner Minshew, the Jets traded for Geno Smith and return Justin Fields, and the Browns could see Deshaun Watson dueling with Shedeur Sanders in 2026. These situations don’t necessarily have the potential for ceilings as high as what the Dolphins, Falcons, and Vikings could see, but those QB duos could potentially serve as bridges to buy time for later draft classes all the same.
That leaves us with the Steelers, who are currently set to return only Mason Rudolph and Will Howard at quarterback. There are some expectations that 42-year-old veteran Aaron Rodgers could come back to play another season with his former Packers head coach Mike McCarthy now in charge in Pittsburgh, but Rodgers has been taking his time in making a decision.
If he does come back, this could set up the perfect situation for Simpson. One of Simpson’s biggest knocks is that he has only played one season of college football as a starter. Allowing Simpson to sit and learn under Rodgers could end up being the perfect recipe to building the next star passer to wear black and yellow. It seems we’re not alone in that thought, either. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk claimed yesterday to have sources who believe the Steelers “will take him if he’s on the board when Pittsburgh makes the 21st overall pick.”
QB Aaron Rodgers’ Steelers Decision Not Imminent
The Steelers’ 2025 season ended with a bit of a whimper. Losing on a Week 17 trip to Cleveland to keep the Ravens in the AFC North race then beating their division rival and moving on to the playoffs by means of a missed 44-yard field goal attempt at the buzzer, Pittsburgh’s flame finally went out at the hands of a stifling Texans defense that held them to six points at home. The questions immediately turned to what direction was the team heading in.
Since Ben Roethlisberger‘s final season in 2021, the quarterback carousel in Pittsburgh has failed to set up the future of the franchise. Their first attempts post-Roethlisberger were to set up that future by drafting first-round Pitt-product Kenny Pickett, but a three-way battle that included former first-round pick Mitchell Trubisky and Steelers backup Mason Rudolph failed to produce a winner over time. So in 2024, the team abandoned the develop plan and jumped on the pro scouting train, signing veteran Russell Wilson and trading for Justin Fields.
That combination seemed to be working for the franchise, until it didn’t. With Wilson starting the season injured, Fields led the team to a 4-2 start, and when Wilson took over, Pittsburgh won six of its next seven games. The season came crashing down, though, as the Steelers’ limped into the playoffs on a four-game losing streak before losing their first-round playoff game for their fifth-playoff trip in a row. The team stuck with the free agent route last year but moved on from Wilson in favor of veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
The Steelers 2025-pursuit of Rodgers was a long, drawn-out process. Over the course of four months, Rodgers casually moved through the headlines, mulling retirement and weighing offers from this team or that team. As other franchises grew impatient or began to see the writing on the wall, that writing pointed closer and closer to Minnesota or Pittsburgh, but despite a couple of efforts from the team on different occasions to get some clarity, an answer didn’t officially come until early June, forcing the Steelers to maneuver much of the offseason, including the draft and free agency, without a concrete plan on who was playing quarterback.
So after the 2025 season ended on a bit of a downward trajectory, it seemed a foregone conclusion that Rodgers would be mulling over his future again, and once the team moved on from long-time head coach Mike Tomlin, it seemed impossible that Rodgers was long for Pittsburgh. That was, until the Steelers replaced Tomlin with Rodgers’ head coach of 13 years in Green Bay, Mike McCarthy. All of the sudden, the signs were pointing right back to Pittsburgh for Rodgers, but ever the patient customer, Rodgers has refused to say anything definitive on the matter.
During a recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers provided sound bites that conveyed little urgency or imminency. “We’re sitting here. It’s March 4th. Free agency starts in a week,” he dictated. “I’ve been spending a lot of time with my wife…just been laying low…But I’ve talked to (McCarthy), I’ve talked to (general manager Omar Khan). There’s been no deadline that’s been put in front of me. There’s been no contract offer or anything, so there’s nothing that I’m having to debate between.
“I’m a free agent,” he concluded. “And, again, I’m enjoying time with my wife and enjoying this part of the offseason, and I think there’s conversations to be had down the line, but right now, there hasn’t been any progressive conversations.”
In one of his many recent interviews, Khan also spoke on the situation, per Mark Kaboly, a correspondent for The Pat McAfee Show. “I mean, I don’t really want to say it has to be done by (free agency),” Khan explained. “You know, we’d like to have an idea, but it’s just, it isn’t going to go like it did last year…He knows how we feel, and I think we know how he feels about us. It was a good experience for both sides.”
That doesn’t sound entirely like two sides on the same page. It sounds more as if the Steelers are pretty itchy to know what their situation is going to be moving forward but don’t want to pressure Rodgers. Mike DeFabo of The Athletic asserts that team is working under the assumption that “Rodgers is going to return for 2026, but until he gives them a definitive answer, they can’t speak in certain terms.” He adds that Pittsburgh believes it will “get an answer from Rodgers in the next few weeks,” which could mean a lot of things.
Part of the reason the Steelers are eager to know their situation is so they can address other contract issues with confidence in what their numbers are going to look like. Particularly, DeFabo mentions that the Steelers are hoping to secure two of the team’s premier pass rushers alongside T.J. Watt. Khan recently expressed his desire for the team to reach an extension agreement with outside linebacker Nick Herbig. Two issues arise from this desire. First, Herbig may not want to sign an extension just yet. He may be interested in betting on himself to continue improving his output each season in the hopes of really cashing in next year.
The second issue stems from 2023’s extension of fellow outside linebacker Alex Highsmith. The prevailing thought has been that it wouldn’t be practical for the Steelers to commit that much cap space to Herbig, Highsmith, and Watt, and that someone would end up on the outside looking in, but Khan’s response to notions that he couldn’t extend Herbig while retaining Highsmith was simply that “you can’t ever have enough (edge rushers).” This is likely why the Steelers are working to extend Herbig now, making it more feasible to stomach all three contracts. It will be interesting to see if Pittsburgh can land on a deal that sufficiently satisfies Herbig without breaking the bank.