Despite their regular-season success in recent years, the Pittsburgh Steelers are tired of falling short. They want to compete for a championship in 2025-26, which is why they went out and signed Aaron Rodgers as an upgrade at quarterback.
Just about everyone assumed this would be Rodgers’ final season, and he led folks to believe the same thing. Is there a possibility that he returns for a second year in Pittsburgh, though? He briefly addressed that again before his debut campaign even begins.
Aaron Rodgers Leaving Door Open for Steelers Return in 2026?
On an episode of “Not Just Football” with Steelers teammate Cameron Heyward, Rodgers was pressed by wideout DK Metcalf about coming back beyond this season.
“I think a lot of people may be looking at us like, ‘What are they going to do? It’s a big question mark,'” Metcalf said. “They can just wait and see what we do. I think we’re going to do some special things this year. Looking forward to it, and maybe we can run it back.”
His one-word response didn’t do anything to shut the door on that prospect.
“Maybe,” Rodgers said with a smile.
This is a contrast from Rodgers’ June comments on “The Pat McAfee Show” about this tracking to be his swan song in the NFL.
“I’m pretty sure this is it,” Rodgers said. “That’s why we just did a one-year deal. Steelers didn’t need to put an extra years on that or anything. So, this was really about finishing with a lot of love and fun and peace for the career that I’ve had. I’ve played 20 freaking years. Like, it’s been a long run. I’ve enjoyed it, and what better place to finish than with one of the cornerstone franchises of the NFL with Mike Tomlin and a great group of leadership and great guys in a city that, you know, expects you to win.”
Although he’s no longer an MVP-level player, there’s no denying that Rodgers can still sling the rock. Amid plenty of dysfunction with the New York Jets last year, he threw 28 touchdowns. Even a diminished version of him is an improvement over what the Steelers have had.
Only time will tell whether Pittsburgh gets to benefit from his play for longer than one year.
Pittsburgh Should Plan to Not Have Rodgers Either Way
It’s this writer’s take that either way, the Steelers should plan to not have Rodgers on the roster next season. First and foremost, his comments on “McAfee” are far more telling than a tongue-in-cheek “maybe” on a podcast. The environments are different, and he put much more thought into the former sequence than the latter.
There are very few outcomes that foster the need for a redo. Should everything pan out perfectly and Pittsburgh wins the Super Bowl, that’d be a storybook ending for one of football’s best careers for a quarterback.
Should the team suffer another heartbreaking exit early in the postseason, why not cut everything loose and restock with a young signal-caller? The 2026 NFL Draft provides plenty of intriguing potential options to choose from.
With Rodgers on a one-year deal, this is shaping up for him to ride off into the sunset. But if there’s one thing he’s taught the football world over the years, it’s that you can’t predict his next move.
