With every sweltering day at training camp, the Pittsburgh Steelers feel less like a team in transition and more like one stepping up to the table for one last roll of the dice.
On one side sits Aaron Rodgers, a 41-year-old quarterback on a bargain deal, trying to squeeze one more run out of a Hall of Fame career. On the other sits Mike Tomlin, the head coach with a spotless non-losing record streak and something to prove.
When Pittsburgh signed Rodgers to a one-year, $13.65 million contract, it wasn’t just a shrewd financial move. It was a statement, maybe even a warning. As longtime broadcaster Dan Patrick said bluntly: “The bigger picture, more important to me, is Mike Tomlin… They had to know that it was one year, and he gave him a bargain price.”
Rodgers may be the short-term play, but the long-term consequences fall squarely on Tomlin’s shoulders.
Tomlin’s time may be running out
Rodgers brings glittering credentials: 503 career touchdowns, over 62,000 passing yards, four MVP awards, and the best passer rating in NFL history (102.6).
But he’s also a 41-year-old coming off a significant injury and a complicated final act in New York. He threw 28 touchdowns and 11 picks in his final season with the Jets, a solid 90.5 passer rating, but in Pittsburgh, solid may not be enough.
The Steelers haven’t won a playoff game since 2016. Rodgers isn’t here to maintain the status quo; he’s here to break the postseason drought or watch the house of cards collapse.
Patrick posed a critical question about why Tomlin and the front office didn’t draft a quarterback of the future.
“Maybe they didn’t like these quarterbacks. Maybe they didn’t like Jaxson Dart. Maybe they didn’t like Shedeur Sanders or any of these other quarterbacks. But you’re back in the mix again. And if you’re still looking for a quarterback, man, you are behind a lot of teams,” Patrick observed.
That critique hits home because the AFC North isn’t forgiving. Between Lamar Jackson‘s dynamic brilliance and Joe Burrow‘s cold-blooded precision, there’s little room for uncertainty.
“You’re going against Lamar Jackson and you’re going against Joe Burrow in your own division, you know, so it’s one year,” Patrick added.
Rodgers has already taken steps to ingratiate himself in the Steelers locker room, working closely with rookie Will Howard, offering guidance and flashes of veteran leadership.
At minicamp, he vowed to the media, “all-in from now on.” But even his renewed focus comes with an expiration date. The plan is short-term; the expectations are immediate.
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