Considered to be a crucial domino in the grand scheme of the free agency picture, Aaron Rodgers remains unemployed at this point in time. With Russell Wilson now a member of the New York Giants, the former Green Bay Packer was recently spotted working out with the team’s newfound WR, D.K. Metcalf.
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While the series of events has led many to believe that a Rodgers-Steelers signing is all but inevitable, the franchise’s former signal caller, Ben Roethlisberger, believes that Rodgers could be holding out for a better situation. On the latest episode of the aptly titled Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger podcast, the two time Super Bowl champion showed some clear frustrations over Rodgers’ hesitation to sign with Pittsburgh.
“Aaron, let’s be honest. If you’re going to be throwing to DK Metcalf and telling everybody about, you might as well just sign. Like, what are we doing?”
While he did feel confident enough to assert that “I really believe he’s going to be a Steeler,” Roethlisberger couldn’t help but to feel as if there were still other factors in play. Based on the optics, Big Ben suggests that Rodgers may actually be looking to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, Brett Favre.
“You’ve thrown to DK, you’ve had all these meetings, and honestly, there’s not a lot of options out there for you… It’s come down to Pittsburgh and Minnesota… I think Aaron is still secretly holding out for Minnesota,” Ben added.
Highlighting the fact that the Vikings have yet to close the door on the notion of benching J.J. McCarthy for a second year, the Pittsburgh legend suggested that, regardless of where he lands, Rodgers would be better off to make his decision prior to the start of the 2025 NFL Draft.
In noting that the Vikings likely provide him with a better chance at winning one last Super Bowl, Roethlisberger did feel the need to mention the increasing amount of parallels between the careers of Favre and Rodgers.
“For a guy that didn’t want to be in Brett’s shadow, he’s following those same teams.”
Nevertheless, Rodgers still has plenty of time to potentially finalize a deal prior to night one of the draft, which is set to take place on April 24.
Ben Roethlisberger reacts to Aaron Rodgers’ rumors
Believing that Rodgers’ throwing session with the Steelers’ latest WR1 is a clear red herring, the all-time leader in passing yards for the Steelers also mentioned that he had heard whisperings about there being changes in Rodgers’ living situation. While he did describe the news as being a “he said-she said” type of situation, Roethlisberger did attest this –
“I had heard… that he was, supposedly, buying a house in Robinson, Pennsylvania, by the airport… Supposedly.”
Given the overwhelming amount of indicators that seem to suggest that Pittsburgh is the perfect fit for Rodgers at this point in his career, Roethlisberger found himself asking the same question time and time again, “Why would you not sign?”
Having invested first-round draft capital in McCarthy, it remains unlikely that the Vikings would be willing to see the next face of their franchise ride the pine for a second consecutive season. Should Rodgers hope to make the most of the twilight years of his career, perhaps it’s best that sides with the franchise that doesn’t have an immediate replacement option.
Then again, seeing a second Green Bay legend dawn the purple and gold throughout their final days could provide a storybook ending to what has been one of the best QB careers in the history of the league.
