NFL Analyst Says Steelers Should Ditch Aaron Rodgers and Add a Veteran Presence in Kyler Murray or Kirk Cousins

Aaron Rodgers played well for a 42-year-old this past season with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He threw for over 3,000 yards, had 24 touchdown passes, just seven interceptions, and led the team to a 10-6 record. But when push came to shove, he didn’t deliver the playoff success that was expected, with the Steelers getting ousted in the first round.

That’s why former GM Mike Tannenbaum believes that the Steelers should move on from Rodgers next season.

The NFL analyst doesn’t see the point in the team pursuing another year with the quarterback when they already struggled so much offensively last season. He feels the team should lean fully into a new era and a rebuild.

“I would clearly move on from [Aaron Rodgers],” Tannenbaum said during a segment on Get Up. “Look, last year they were 25th in the league in explosive play rate. He is obviously an all-time great player, Aaron Rodgers is. But he’s going to be 43 in December, and you have a new head coach.”

The Steelers did indeed look severely limited with Rodgers at the helm. They struggled to protect him, and his mobility was clearly limited at this stage of his career. This didn’t allow plays downfield to develop and forced the offense to lean more on short, quick completions as well as the running game.

The offensive strategy under coordinator Arthur Smith worked against teams in the regular season. But in the postseason, the Steelers were exposed. The Houston Texans routinely pressured Rodgers during the Wildcard weekend, and he didn’t have much time to throw. He also couldn’t escape the pocket or extend plays. This led to a dominant defensive performance, as Rodgers was sacked four times.

Later on, Tannenbaum listed who the Steelers should target as their next quarterback.

“Give Will Howard a chance, then go scour for a veteran. Kyler Murray, Kirk Cousins, and then look at the Draft,” Tannenbaum professed.

“I would clearly move on from [Aaron Rodgers].”

—@RealTannenbaum on the Steelers’ QB situation pic.twitter.com/0P7kUgZ5tT

— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) February 16, 2026

Howard was a sixth-round draft pick by the Steelers last year. He won the national championship at Ohio State University in his fifth year of eligibility. He was also included as a piece in the DK Metcalf trade.

If we talk about Murray, the quarterback had a disastrous 2025 campaign with the Arizona Cardinals. That makes it three out of four seasons in which he has struggled to stay healthy and perform when he is on the field. Still, he is a player who showed a ton of potential after winning Rookie of the Year and making two Pro Bowls to open his career.

Finally, Cousins is expected to be released by the Atlanta Falcons in March. He started eight games this past season and went 5-3. But going into his age-38 season, his best days are clearly behind him.

Regardless, all three players are viable candidates for the Steelers to replace Rodgers and serve as a bridge into next season. The team could even revive Murray’s career and recapture the magic he showed near the beginning of it. Or maybe Howard turns out to be much better than they thought.

At the end of the day, though, it might just be best to run it back with Rodgers. He and Mike McCarthy already have a proven track record together, and as Tannenbaum says, he is a solid bridge quarterback. It is wild that this is where we are with Rodgers and his career. But he has hung around for so long that we have been forced to view him through a different lens.