Wearing the familiar No. 8, but now in black and gold, future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers practiced with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the first time Tuesday, June 10. Rodgers also met with the media after the first day of mandatory mini-camp to explain his decision-making process.
Why did he sign with Pittsburgh and what took so long?
Rodgers signed a one-year, $13 million contract on Friday, June 6. He said it would take a couple of weeks to learn the new offense, but he was drawn to the Steelers as an iconic franchise. He compared it to the 18 seasons he spent in Green Bay. Rodgers said playing for Mike Tomlin, the longest-tenured head coach in the NFL, was a significant selling point.
“I think it starts with Mike Tomlin. I’ve been a fan of his for a long time,” Rodgers said. “There’s a few iconic franchises in the NFL. I played for one of them for 18 years. This is another one of those. There’s something special about, obviously, this area, so many great quarterbacks are from Pittsburgh.”
The 41-year-old spoke with the New York Giants, the Minnesota Vikings and the New Orleans Saints early in the free-agent signing period. It took him more than two months to sign his contract in Pittsburgh after his free-agent visit with the team. He was dealing with some “issues in his personal life” that prevented him from signing earlier.
“I mean, I think there were conversations with other organizations for sure,” Rodgers said. “But again, the rapport that fell in between me and Mike made it to where, as I was going through my personal stuff, there wasn’t any other option for me. It was here or not play.”
Does Rodgers have anything left in the tank?
The four-time league MVP’s run with the New York Jets was a disappointment. He signed in 2023 and called just four plays in his debut before suffering a torn achilles. Last season, he started all 17 games and threw for over 3,800 yards with 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. His quarterback rating of 90 placed him 19th among full-time starters. The Jets offense finished 24th in scoring, and the team finished with a 5-12 record.
His tenure ended unceremoniously after a meeting with the Jets front office, where Rodgers said he felt he “wasn’t shown an ample amount of respect.” He won’t have that problem in Pittsburgh, but it will take him some time to get acclimated.
“Everything’s new,” Rodgers said. “It’s like the first day of school. I don’t know a lot of guys’ names. They don’t have names on the back of the jerseys here. They don’t have names on the doors in the meeting room. So, I literally walk out of the locker room lost, try and grab somebody, ‘hey, where am I going?’ But I’ll get the feel of it, and I’m excited about making this home.”
Rodgers talked about his ties to Pittsburgh, including his former head coach in Green Bay, Mike McCarthy. He also gave the media a vintage Rodgers-esque quote when asked why he decided to keep playing football. He said his ego wasn’t a factor.
“A lot of decisions that I’ve made over my career in life, from strictly the ego, even if they turn out well, are always unfulfilling,” Rodgers said. “But the decisions made from the soul are usually pretty fulfilling. So this was the decision that was best for my soul.”
What are his new rivals saying?
The Steelers will take on Rodgers’ old team, the Jets, in the season opener on Sept. 7. On Oct. 12, they will meet the rival Cleveland Browns and defensive end Myles Garrett, who had a little message for Rodgers on his first day.
“What do I think about it?” Garrett said. “I think it’s a good opportunity to put him in the graveyard.”
Garrett’s comment was a likely reference to the Halloween decorations at his home, which prominently feature the headstones of the quarterbacks he has sacked in his career.
And just so we give you all the Aaron Rodgers drama –– he also revealed that he is now a married man. He said he tied the knot “a couple months ago” when asked about the ring on his finger.
