"Walking On Eggshells": Steelers In The Middle Of Seriously Challenging Aaron Rodgers Situation

In the 2025 offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers put all of their eggs in the Aaron Rodgers basket. They passed up on signing someone like Sam Darnold, who just won a Super Bowl; or drafting a young, promising rookie like Jaxson Dart or Tyler Shough. The team thought it was just a veteran quarterback away from keeping the offense afloat while the defense would win games. That evidently was wrong; the defense wasn't elite in 2025, and while the offense outperformed its talent level, it had a low ceiling. Now in the 2026 offseason, the Steelers are in the same spot as 2025, waiting for Rodgers to make a decision. 

The Rodgers situation is becoming very strange. Rodgers said he had not been offered a contract as of early March, so he had no deadline. That was five days before the legal tampering period started. The team has said that it does want Rodgers back in 2026 with Omar Khan and Mike McCarthy both saying it. 

The situation is very unusual, and as it stands now, if a deal falls through, the team's only solution would be through the draft or Will Howard. The front office once again passed on signing free-agent quarterbacks such as Malik Willis and Kyler Murray, believing that Rodgers will be back in 2026. The draft is creeping up, and they still have no answer, but the organization is keeping Rodgers in the loop.

Brian Batko of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette recently wrote an article about the Steelers and their offseason so far. He mentioned all of the exciting moves that the team has made to this point and also mentioned the Rodgers situation. The Steelers other quarterbacks are getting lots of praise, but Rodgers is usually a wait-and-see. Batko had some choice words to describe this debacle and how it might be viewed in the locker room.. 

"There’s some degree of walking on eggshells when it comes to the Rodgers situation. [Michael] Pittman [Jr.] repeatedly referenced Mason Rudolph and Will Howard as a good duo in-house, while respecting Rodgers’ right to consider his options," Batko wrote.

Howard has gotten an unusual amount of praise during the 2026 offseason, especially from McCarthy. He has not seen any sort of NFL action that wasn't in practice. Howard was a sixth-round pick and no one is quite sure what to expect from the young signal-caller.

The mystery surround Howard is in what the team truly has. He might be another late-round quarterback who will be a career backup. The Howard propaganda could all be a scare tactic for Rodgers and, if that is the case, it doesn't seem to be working. It looks like it could last until June again, like in 2025.

Steelers Have Run Out Of Potential Options

Free agency started nearly two weeks ago. All of the top quarterbacks in this year's free agency class are gone. The team won't be able to get one that's better than what it already has. Unless the franchise plans on looking through the trade market, Rodgers is now the best bet. 

The team's roster is built to win now; it doesn't have time to play an inexperienced quarterback. It needs an already-established veteran that can lead the team, and unfortunately, Rodgers is the only option for that matter. 

Rodgers may not have been all bad in 2025, but he certainly wasn't all that good either. It wasn't necessarily his fault, as he had no talent around him. At least in 2026, he'll have at a minimum two good receivers. If the Steelers want to win the Super Bowl, they will have to bring Rodgers back and really bank on their roster and coaching staff. Rodgers had some juice in 2025, but fans hope that wasn't all drained before his age-43 season. 

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