Now that New York Jets QB Aaron Rodgers appears not to be returning to the Big Apple, rumors are floating around about where the future Hall of Famer could end up next, and one team that has popped up is the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But Ben Roethlisberger thinks it would be a bad idea if the team decided to pursue Rodgers and spoke out against the idea.
Big Ben Gives Thumbs Down to Aaron Rodgers Idea
While some Steelers fans may be excited about having Rodgers on their team, even if it is just for one last Super Bowl run, Roethlisberger is against the idea.
“Is Aaron going to play anymore? I mean there’s rumors of him coming to Pittsburgh,” said Roethlisberger. “Which I don’t think it’s a good move for the Steelers. I don’t think that’s what you want. I don’t think you want a guy for like a one-year Band-Aid just because if you think that you are just a quarterback away, then you go try and find a quarterback that you think can take you over the top.”
“Listen, Aaron is going to go down as one of the best QBs to ever play the game,” said Roethlisberger. “He is a first-ballot Hall of Famer; he is everything you want, but I don’t know that he fits here because you saw what happened. I mean, Russ can move better than Aaron, and Russ couldn’t get away from some sacks this year. I think if he came here, he would have to learn a new system again.”
Roethlisberger, a future Hall of Famer himself, is a two-time Super Bowl champion, six-time Pro Bowler, and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2004. Since his retirement, the Steelers have struggled to find his replacement.
Steelers’ Quarterback Carousel
The Steelers thought they had found their quarterback of the future when they drafted hometown favorite Kenny Pickett out of Pitt, but he failed as the Steelers’ starter. He’s now the backup for the Philadelphia Eagles.
Then, they turned to Justin Fields and Russell Wilson. Fields was moderately effective, and Wilson ended up having a pretty good season with the Steelers. But it wasn’t enough to get them past the first round of the AFC playoffs.
Wilson’s PFN QB+ ranking was 17th, with a rating of a C. PFN’s QB+ metric assigns a letter grade to every quarterback performance and factors in a number of stats such as success rate when pressured, third-down conversion rate, pocket production, and clutch performance. Meanwhile, Rodgers ranked five spots below Wilson, at 21st, with a rating of C-.
Despite rumors of Rodgers coming to Pittsburgh, Steelers beat writer Gerry Dulac says there is no way the team will be making this move, Dulac told Rich Esien.
“I can tell you it won’t be Aaron Rodgers. They have no interest in doing that.”
Gerry Dulac to Rich Eisen: “I can tell you it won’t be Aaron Rodgers. They have no interest in doing that. " #Steelers #NFL https://t.co/cdSVisU8Iz
— Steelers Depot 7⃣ (@Steelersdepot) January 16, 2025
Well, it sounds like that rumor is dead, but the question remains: what will the team do about Fields and Wilson?