Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin met with the media on Sunday ahead of the NFL’s owner’s meetings and offered an update on the team’s quarterback situation, as well as its pursuit of free agent Aaron Rodgers. The update: There is no update. At least nothing definitive.
Tomlin said the Steelers have no definitive timeline for the Rodgers situation to unfold, while they continue to explore their other options in free agency and the draft. He also seems content with the process taking some time, adding that the start of training camp would be the first time not having somebody else signed would be an issue for the team.
Rodgers visited with the Steelers nearly two weeks ago, but that was only described as a “get to know each other” meeting. There has been no update or progress from either side since.
With the calendar set to roll over to April, and with the 2025 NFL Draft just a few weeks away, the only two quarterbacks on the Steelers roster are Mason Rudolph, back for his second stint with the team, and Skylar Thompson. Neither option is ideal for a starting role, while they are looking at a complete overhaul of their quarterback depth chart for the second year in a row. It is awfully difficult to win with that sort of instability at the most important position on the field.
Tomlin’s lack of an update on Rodgers, as well as the Steelers’ quarterback situation, really seems to drive home the fact the organization did not have a solid plan going into the offseason.
They did not make much of an effort to retain either Russell Wilson or Justin Fields and have missed out on pretty much every other veteran quarterback that was available.
When it comes to the remaining free agents, Rodgers is pretty much it. And there is little about that option that should make Steelers fans optimistic given his age and rapidly declining play the past few years. Not to mention the sideshow circus level of distractions he can bring,
The Steelers hold the No. 21 overall pick, but it is a weak quarterback class and the top prospects may not be available when they are on the clock.
No matter who starts on opening day, it will be their fifth different Week 1 starting quarterback over the past five years, going from Ben Roethlisberger to Mitch Trubisky, to Kenny Pickett, to Justin Fields, to whoever this year’s will be. It also seems verly likely, based on the available options, that streak will continue for a sixth season in 2026 if they do not get the position right this offseason.
The Steelers finally made a real upgrade to their wide receiver room this offseason by adding DK Metcalf to go with George Pickens and Calvin Austin, addressing a huge weakness from a year ago. Now they just have to figure out who is going to actually be passing them the football.
