There were rumors online that Aaron Rodgers would make his Pittsburgh Steelers move official at Pat McAfee’s live show, which happened to be held in the Steel City. But those rumors never came to fruition. Rodgers was a no-show, leaving Steelers fans still waiting. And according to Chris Simms, he knows exactly why the star quarterback stood everyone up.
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Rodgers has been linked to the Steelers for the better part of a month now. He’s met with the team, toured their facilities, and even threw to one of their receivers, DK Metcalf, recently. But he still hasn’t signed a deal. It’s arguably the best situation that wants him, with a great coach in Mike Tomlin to guide him — but Rodgers has yet to budge.
Is it because Tomlin and company haven’t made a deep playoff run in years? At 41, could Rodgers be hoping for one final shot at a Super Bowl? Simms believes it’s all of that — plus the slim possibility of the Vikings stepping in — that’s keeping Rodgers from fully committing to the Steelers.
“I get the sense he’s not there yet,” the analyst explained. “As I will continue to say until proven otherwise, I think that shiny purple uniform that you (Mike Florio) like, he likes it too. And he likes that circumstance best, so he’s going to be patient with that.”
The Vikings were the first team to be linked to Rodgers heavily, but it wore off after it was reported they wanted to move forward with JJ McCarthy. Regardless, it still seems like the place Rodgers wants to go most, as Simms points out.
His co-host, Mike Florio, wasn’t too pleased to hear Simms’ take. Florio immediately rolled his eyes and shook his head at what his co-host laid out, then responded.
“See, what’s going to happen is they’re going to sign him, I’m going to be physically ill, and I’m going to have to swear off the Vikings like Bacardi and rum. That’s what’s going to happen. Fly Eagles fly, or Bear down,” Florio said.
There’s no question Steelers fans would be furious to see Rodgers go to Minnesota. After all, they are the better fit and would be willing to play Rodgers. The Vikings might be more reluctant and keep him on a shorter leash.
Rodgers to the Vikings make sense?
The idea of Rodgers going to the Vikings isn’t unfamiliar territory for Florio. He even wrote about the possibility just a month ago, drawing parallels between Rodgers and Brett Favre’s time in Minnesota.
“The Vikings were able to overcome the ‘schism’ that had the team supposedly split between Tarvaris Jackson and Favre. Once Favre showed up and started flinging the pig, any and all doubts about the upgrade to the aging veteran were instantly squelched,” Florio wrote.
Oh, the irony of Rodgers ending up in Minnesota is marvelous to think about. He and Favre would be following the same career path. It really makes you wonder about the current Green Bay quarterback, Jordan Love. Is he on his way to becoming a New York Jet next? And subsequently, a Minnesota Viking?
Jokes aside, this has been a thrilling saga to follow. Anything is on the table for Rodgers at this point.
