It’s impossible to find a perfect parallel for end-of-career Aaron Rodgers amid the constellation of future Hall of Fame quarterbacks who have changed teams at the end of their rope. Joe Montana’s arrival in Kansas City, for example, was celebrated like the moon landing. Had Tom Brady not arrived in Tampa during the earliest days of a pandemic, one would assume that he, too, would have been carted through town in something reminiscent of the popemobile.
Perhaps Rodgers’s moment was two years ago. By design or not, he was more catered to by a New York Jets franchise drastically trying to erase its past at the position than a teenager at the Apple store. But over the past six months, he has been publicly subjected to reports that his own owner wanted him benched. He was also—depending on how you read the situation—put on the back burner by his (possible) preferred destination in Minnesota. And now, Rodgers has signed with a team whose most notable veteran—Cameron Heyward—publically eschewed the idea of having to recruit Rodgers in March, saying, “either you want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler or you don’t.” (Heyward has since clarified his remarks to take a bit of the teeth out of them.)
Such is the energy that greets a quarterback at the end of his Hall of Fame career. As I’ve pointed out, if nothing else, this is a forum for Rodgers to solidify a statistical legacy. He is six touchdown passes away from fourth all time. He is 37 away from third all time, which is certainly possible if Rodgers decides to remain in Pittsburgh for more than one season. He is fewer than 1,200 yards away from eclipsing both Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger, which would lock him into fifth place all time.
More than that, though, Rodgers has an interesting opportunity—should he actually want it—to soften his outside perception before walking off into the sunset (a quest not aided by the timing of his deal, meant to sync up with the end of the Steelers’ voluntary offseason activities. The Steelers, more than any of Rodgers’s other suitors, are going to eventually force him to fall in line (I’ll clarify what I mean by that below, because I think many people are mostly getting it wrong). And while I have said time and time again that the general public perception and the inside-football perception of Rodgers are dramatically different, this is the first time in Rodgers’s career that he will be in a place that does not require him—and may actively dissuade him—from setting the cultural agenda. It’s a place that is going to expect him to play physically, to swallow the blame exclusively and actively avoid any of those nebulous postgame moments that Rodgers likes to orchestrate, allowing him to point fingers while, at the same time, maintaining an arm’s length from criticism.
Following the post–Brett Favre era in Green Bay, Rodgers has consistently been the most coveted, discussed and sought-after player everywhere he’s gone. In Pittsburgh, he may end up being the third- or fourth-most popular player on his own team, and certainly down the list in terms of beloved figures who have formed the foundation of this franchise’s seemingly endless stretch of winning seasons. This remains true even though the Steelers allowed Rodgers to very publically meander his way onto the roster officially and did not draft a quarterback high up to buttress themselves from possible embarrassment had Rodgers changed his mind about playing there in 2025.
In Pittsburgh, he will also exist in more of a functioning autocracy than a democratic marketplace of ideas. I don’t want people to get that confused with Rodgers being muzzled; certainly Mike Tomlin has dealt with countless players on his roster who have behaved bizarrely, acted irrationally or stood out in terms of not being considered your typical NFL model citizen. That was especially true at the quarterback position for a majority of his tenure. I don’t think Rodgers will have to cease appearing on his television programs or podcasts of choice.
But I do think that Rodgers’s match here is fortuitous for a player who may end up wanting a broader set of postcareer options than internet provocateur. Unlike a Packers team that, over time, capitulated to both his best and worst impulses, and a Jets team that remade the organization entirely to maximize his skill set, Pittsburgh offers the chance to punch the clock and—with that—perhaps a chance to blunt some of his more disagreeable impulses.
Clearly, Rodgers did not have to sign with Pittsburgh. After the Minnesota Vikings committed fully to J.J. McCarthy (for spring ball, at least), the rest of his life opened up before his eyes. Island getaways, media opportunities, political opportunities, you name it. The Steelers, even with Rodgers, wouldn’t markedly change the conversation in the AFC North, and it’s hard to imagine them being seriously considered a Super Bowl contender. I would assume that Rodgers’s pecking order of possible destinations confirms as much.
But he does want something out of the Steelers in return for capable quarterback play. It’s going to be worth our time figuring out exactly what that is in 2025.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as The Steelers Give Aaron Rodgers a Chance to Rewrite the End of His Career.
