The Pittsburgh Steelers now have all their quarterbacks in place as the team prepares to return from the offseason. After a long period of uncertainty, the Steelers finally landed their veteran quarterback, Aaron Rodgers. The process took time—whether due to Rodgers’ hesitation or prolonged negotiations—but it appears he ultimately gave Pittsburgh some form of a verbal commitment.
“I just think verbally, behind the scenes, not that he guaranteed it, but he’s told [the Steelers], ‘Listen, I’m gonna play for you. I just don’t want to go there and then miss part of mandatory minicamp because of my personal issues. I’m pretty sure they’re gonna be solved by the end of May, at least in my satisfaction where I can give you my all,’” Ian O’Connor said.
Rodgers followed through on his word, but surprisingly, he wasn’t even the Steelers’ first—or second—choice.
“As well as Aaron Rodgers played last year, he still was the Steelers’ third option. They tried to trade for Matthew Stafford, they tried to re-sign Justin Fields,” Adam Schefter said on Get Up.
Former Steeler and current analyst Ryan Clark believes the team made a major mistake by signing Rodgers.
“Aaron Rodgers signing with the Steelers is the worst-case scenario. I think he’ll play good enough, & the team will be just good enough to miss out on a franchise guy next year! One of the greatest players of the era, & one of its greatest head coaches… just years too late,” Clark said.
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Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger also has doubts about how much Rodgers has left in the tank.
“I don’t think he’s got much more after this year,” Roethlisberger said. “I don’t know. I’m just guessing in terms of you coming off an Achilles. Coming off of my elbow, my first year back I felt like I was 100. I wasn’t even—you don’t realize you’re not 100 until the next year when you are 100.”
Rodgers is aiming to make one last Super Bowl run, and the Steelers have given him the weapons to do it. Now, it’s up to him to stay healthy and protect the football.
