Aaron Rodgers is once again keeping teams waiting on his final decision as he weighs whether to keep playing or hang up the cleats. If he does return, he’ll be glad to see that the Pittsburgh Steelers have added Michael Pittman Jr. to the wide receiver room. It should also help that the two already know each other.
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The Steelers acquired the former Indianapolis Colts wideout via trade for a sixth-round pick. And according to Pittman, he and Rodgers have worked out together on multiple occasions during past offseasons.
This year, however, the receiver hasn’t seen A-Rod around. Still, he remains confident that Rodgers will be back next season.
“I think that he wants to play,” Pittman said during his appearance on Up & Adams. “Just knowing Aaron prior to this, I just think that he’s going to try and play as long as he can.”
Rodgers has been in the NFL for 21 seasons now. In December, he’ll turn 43. But he seemingly isn’t letting that stop him from continuing to compete at the highest level. He’s clearly addicted to the game.
Even if Rodgers doesn’t return, though, Pittman is still optimistic about the current QBs in the Steelers organization.
“I think they’re going to give him the most time that he needs. But at the end of the day, we also have 2 other quarterbacks on the roster that I think are great guys, too, in Will [Howard] and Mason [Rudolph]. So, we have really good plans whether he doesn’t come back or whether he does. Obviously, hoping that he comes back,” Pittman noted.
Will Howard is an interesting QB prospect going into his second season with the team. He was picked in the sixth round after winning a national title in college with the Ohio State Buckeyes. GM Omar Khan and new head coach Mike McCarthy have already expressed excitement about the youngster’s development.
Mason Rudolph, on the other hand, is not someone to get too excited about. He’s a backup QB who has started just 19 games throughout his six-year career. He’s more of a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency option and shouldn’t be viewed as a viable starter. The Steelers are also looking at QBs in the draft. However, it’s a rather thin pool of talent this year. Because of this, Rodgers is perhaps their best option for the time being.
Later on, host Kay Adams asked Pittman if he’s ever caught a pass from Rodgers while working out with him.
“No, I have not!” Pittman answered. “I’ve never thrown with Aaron, but he’s been a guy who doesn’t throw that much in the offseason. Just because when you have that much experience, he doesn’t need to be doing all these quarterback guru drills. He kind of knows what he needs to be ready for football season.”
“I think that he wants to play… knowing Aaron [Rodgers] prior to this, I think that he’s going to try and play as long as he can…”
Steelers WR Michael Pittman Jr. on Aaron Rodgers’ future@heykayadams | @MikePitt_Jr | @steelers pic.twitter.com/EChw21iCPn
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) March 23, 2026
All in all, it’s great that Pittman is optimistic about Rodgers returning. But there have been no signs pointing to that being the case. He’s left everyone in the dark on his retirement for the third consecutive year now. Because of this, it’s anyone’s best guess what he’ll be doing next season.
