PITTSBURGH — Aaron Rodgers and Mike Tomlin are taking their long-simmering bromance to the next level.
The four-time NFL MVP has put an end to months of “Will he? Or won’t he?” speculation by agreeing to a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, contingent upon the 41-year-old passing a physical. Financial details of the contract have not been disclosed.
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The Steelers and Rodgers had been in discussions for months. Rodgers even made a discreet visit to the team’s facility in late March, arriving incognito in an unremarkable sedan while wearing a hat and sunglasses.
Although there were positive remarks from both parties afterward, Rodgers didn’t immediately sign the deal. He mentioned on “The Pat McAfee Show” in April that his focus was on supporting those in his inner circle facing “difficult circumstances,” and he wanted to ensure he could fully commit before making a decision.
With mandatory minicamp coming next week, Rodgers apparently finds himself in a place where he can give the Steelers his full attention.
Rodgers joins a team that has been stuck in a transitional period at quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger retired after the 2021 season. Either Rodgers or Mason Rudolph – who returned to Pittsburgh on a two-year deal in March – will likely be Pittsburgh’s fifth Week 1 quarterback in five seasons.
The Steelers have stayed competitive, up to a point anyway, amid the constant churn at the most important position on the field. Pittsburgh has reached the playoffs four times in the last five seasons, only to be quickly escorted out of the postseason in lopsided fashion each time.
Justin Fields and Russell Wilson – who combined to lead the Steelers to a 10-7 record and a playoff berth last season – ended up in New York. Fields will replace Rodgers with the Jets after agreeing to a two-year deal. Wilson is heading to the Giants on a one-year contract.
Those deals left Rodgers and the Steelers without any other reasonable options. Both sides have their reasons for consummating what is essentially a marriage of convenience.
Rodgers hopes to author a happier ending to his Hall of Fame career after two eventful, if underwhelming, seasons with the Jets. While Rodgers is hardly a long-term solution in Pittsburgh, he is the best option left after the Steelers chose not to use one of their higher picks in April’s draft on a quarterback, instead taking a late-round flyer on former Ohio State star Will Howard.
The union brings Rodgers and Tomlin – the longest-tenured head coach in major professional North American sports – together after years of what is the football equivalent of flirting.
They’ve long held each other in high esteem and have enjoyed a handful of memorable on-field interactions that went viral. Last fall, they playfully nodded at each other as a sign of respect after Tomlin was forced to burn a timeout when Rodgers tried a quick snap that would have ended with the Steelers being penalized for having too many men on the field.
Pittsburgh is hoping Rodgers has enough left physically to go with a football IQ that remains elite. He was solid if not spectacular last season in New York, throwing for 28 touchdowns against 11 interceptions.
Yet his play on the field often took a back seat to the drama off it as the Jets cycled through coaches and limped to a 5-12 record, with Rodgers spending much of his time in New York defending comments he made on platforms like “The Pat McAfee Show.”
The Steelers are no strangers to drama. If there’s been one constant since the team’s last Super Bowl appearance – a loss to Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in February 2011 – it’s the ability to employ talented, if mercurial players.
The list runs the gamut, from Roethlisberger to Antonio Brown to Le’Veon Bell to JuJu Smith-Schuster to George Pickens, traded to Dallas last month.
Pittsburgh has retooled a bit in the offseason, including acquiring two-time Pro Bowl wide receiver DK Metcalf from Seattle. The Steelers quickly signed him to a new five-year deal to bring some stability (and hopefully maturity) to a wide receiver room that’s lacked both.
The one thing Pittsburgh hadn’t done was do the same at the most important position on the field. Tomlin and team president Art Rooney II both kept the door open for Fields and Wilson to return, only to stand by idly when Fields bolted for the Jets and make no serious attempt to retain Wilson.
While the Steelers did bring back Rudolph, a season removed from leading them on an improbable run to the playoffs, he is considered a backup.
The field of experienced players available eventually winnowed down to Rodgers.
His arrival is a stopgap, one that Pittsburgh hopes will keep it competitive until a long-term solution arrives, most likely in the 2026 draft. Until then, Rodgers and the Steelers will try to make the best of a marriage of convenience of their own making.
AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi contributed to this report.
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