State of our former QB, Aaron Rodgers

[OldSchool101]

I think they added some nice O weapons. Michael Pittman and Germie Bernard. Plus Jennings Dunker (one of my favorites) in Day 2 and Max Iheanachor in Day 1. Then a couple of Day 3 WR/RB/Teams weapons. Their Offense is primed to compete.

Their D was a bigger concern last season. I’m not sure The Steelers have done enough to overcome that aspect.

 

[gopkrs]

I guess that's kind of the philosophical debate at the heart of it. Kind of two schools of thought... You see teams do this a lot where they're basically clinging to the tail end of their "championship window" (if you believe in such a thing) and trying to squeeze out every last drop of potential performance from their team as constructed before blowing it up.

And then on the other side you have teams that are more or less okay with taking their licks for a year or two with the belief that they will be able to rebuild, reload, retool, whatever you want to call it...and put themselves in a better long-term position by embracing a couple of bad seasons in order to shed some salary, acquire draft capital, maximize contracts, what have you

I don't really know which is better or worse. I'd be interested in seeing if there's any research that points towards one "school" being more effective. My gut says that the first course of action is more consistent but probably runs the risk of being stuck in "good, not great" while the second is almost certainly more boom or bust.

Naturally, success is not ever guaranteed (even after loading up on top picks or whatever), and if you can at least make the playoffs you've got a puncher's chance. In that sense, maybe it is more effective to try and lean in to getting the most out of your existing roster with incremental improvements. But, then again....while the Steelers were technically a playoff team, they looked a LONG way off from being any contender. Like I said, Rodgers can win you games, but will he be *better* than last year? Elsewhere, Joe Burrow missed the majority of the season...and Lamar Jackson missed 4 games or so and had paced nearly a career-worst year in the games he did play. I would expect both the Bengals and Ravens to be better, too...

So it's a tough spot to be in. My gut feeling is that if you take the Steelers from last year, they need more than a few percentage points of improvement or "incremental gains" to be a serious threat, but hey, that's why they play the games. There is a part of me that thinks in a few years they will look back and say "Why did we waste that time with Rodgers, delaying the inevitable? We could've jump-started this rebuild two years earlier and ripped off the bandaid" or similar. But again....that's why they play the games

Not sure the Steelers really had that much of a real chance to jump start unless you are actually recommending blowing the season for a higher draft pick. Us for instance. I was thinking all along that next year should be the year. But seeing what we have done, I'm excited to see the season start. I'm still not enamored with the O Line. Wish we would have improved more there. Tough for me to get real excited about a 5th rounder there.

 

[milani]

So the Steelers find themselves in kind of a weird place.

15m or thereabouts for Rodgers for a season is almost certainly going to be cheaper (and likely still better) than you would hope for out of any other potential veteran signing. Last year he was ultimately still a "top-half" QB in yards, TDs, passer rating, completion %, TD%, INT%, and just outside it in ANY/A. Certainly far from his best days, no doubting that, but good enough to win you games still (As a funny comparison, for instance, one of his closest direct stats-comps for last season is none other that Caleb Williams )

But, on the other hand, he kinda puts you in that weird no-man's land of too good but not good enough. I don't think anyone is going to consider Pittsburgh a real contender by any stretch of the imagination; it looks like their ceiling is that of a fringe playoff team. And even if Rodgers can get you to that ceiling, is that what you really want? Because that's how you end up with another ~20th draft position and play your way out of a top pick.

And your other QB options are Mason Rudolph, who is also getting you nowhere (and considerably worse than Rodgers), and Drew Allar and Will Howard - who both have practically zero experience. I can understand the logic that says to give it to one of the young guys, but you'd be sending them right to the wolves. I think they are probably hoping that having Rodgers as a QB-mentor (in whatever capacity that may take) will be beneficial to one or both of these guys. And in any case I don't think there's particularly high expectations for either of those guys in the first place.

So like I said it's kind of no man's land. You can get a QB in Rodgers who is affordable and will probably at least give you a puncher's chance in most games. But you're probably not a title contender, and will likely play your way out of premium draft spots. And you don't have a top young QB waiting in the wings that you can go ahead and pass over the reigns to, so it's just kind of QB-purgatory. I guess you run it back with Rodgers for one more year and commit wholesale to a rebuild/rework in 2026/27 but a big part of me asks - why wait? I'm not sure there's much benefit to delaying that process by a year, but it is what it is at this point

It is always hard to get Steeler fans to think rebuild. They did strike gold by letting Big Ben get right to it back in 2004. But he had a strong cast of characters...And a great coach.

 

[Heyjoe4]

He isn't waiting for a team that wants to sign him, the Steelers have been telling him that they want him back for months. Yet, he is still playing the same game as he played in Green Bay. He has done this at least 4 times that I can recall and with all 3 teams that he has already played for; Packers, Jets, Steelers.

This game he plays forces teams to hold off on contingency plans for who their starting QB is going to be.

I'll say it again, Rodgers is a guy that states that he doesn't like drama, yet he loves creating it and then pretending to be the victim of it. Traits of a narcissist or a manipulative individual.

Agree with all. Correcting a prior statement I made, there are probably no other teams willing to sign a QB for one year other than Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is the best spot for Rodgers and the Steelers, and IMO that's been apparent since last season ended. Adding MM as HC only strengthens the case.

But as you note Poker, this is the **** Rodgers loves to pull. And he exposes his hypocricy. He doesn't want drama, the only thing that should be talked about in the building is football (that gem goes back to his days as a Jet).

For a guy who should be loved for his entertaining and otherworldly play, he does an incredible job at destroyinh his own reputation. But at his age, these problems suggest problems early in life. Then again, who doesn't have at least spme problems like that.

My advice to ARod (not that he takes advice) - Sign, Shut Up, and Play Football.

 

[Heyjoe4]

imho the steelers would be pretty stupid if they haven't been thinking about their QB situation without Rodgers. Don't see how Rodgers affects that at all. Maybe they have been negligent. Maybe they just don't see anyone. But no way is it Rodger's fault.

Good point. The Steelers have to know that Rodgers is a band-aid at QB. But they have done nothing this offseason to address that, as far as I know.

And that isn't Rodgers' fault. It is the responsibility of the Pittsburgh GM and ownership.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Not sure the Steelers really had that much of a real chance to jump start unless you are actually recommending blowing the season for a higher draft pick. Us for instance. I was thinking all along that next year should be the year. But seeing what we have done, I'm excited to see the season start. I'm still not enamored with the O Line. Wish we would have improved more there. Tough for me to get real excited about a 5th rounder there.

Yeah I think the Packers are another season away from being true contenders for a SB. They have very few weak spots - probably CB and OL depth are the biggest - and Gluten will almost certainly address these as soon as he can.

But after the draft, I feel the same and am looking forward to this season. Gluten did a damn good job (ok, on paper) of acquiring the right talent for areas of weakness. Kraft will probably be able to start the season. Parsons will probably miss 6-8 weeks. Bummer but he'll be back.

So there's always hope. Who was picking the Hags to win the SB last year at this time?

 

[rmontro]

Parsons will probably miss 6-8 weeks. Bummer but he'll be back.

I still think Parsons coming back mid to late season might be a blessing in disguise. Might spark a late season run (late season has been a weak spot for us recently). Hopefully we won't be eliminated from the playoffs by then.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I still think Parsons coming back mid to late season might be a blessing in disguise. Might spark a late season run (late season has been a weak spot for us recently). Hopefully we won't be eliminated from the playoffs by then.

That's a good way to look at it. Watson seemed to spark the offense when he came back last season from a 10-month ACL rehab.

And in Parsons' absence, and with Gary traded, there will be a lot of competition at Edge. It's a great opportunity for LVN to have a breakout year, and rookie Dennis-Sutton will get more snaps. All of the Edge/LB guys will have a great chance to show off their pressure/sack skills.

And I think the Packers will make the playoffs without a lot of trouble. Just like prior years, the question is how far will they go?

 

[gopkrs]

Agree with all. Correcting a prior statement I made, there are probably no other teams willing to sign a QB for one year other than Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is the best spot for Rodgers and the Steelers, and IMO that's been apparent since last season ended. Adding MM as HC only strengthens the case.

But as you note Poker, this is the **** Rodgers loves to pull. And he exposes his hypocricy. He doesn't want drama, the only thing that should be talked about in the building is football (that gem goes back to his days as a Jet).

For a guy who should be loved for his entertaining and otherworldly play, he does an incredible job at destroyinh his own reputation. But at his age, these problems suggest problems early in life. Then again, who doesn't have at least spme problems like that.

My advice to ARod (not that he takes advice) - Sign, Shut Up, and Play Football.

Unless you are looking for it, I don't think you see a whole lot on Rodgers. I don't anyway. Obviously he doesn't shy away from the media but it doesn't seem to me like he sits around thinking about how he can get his name on the news.

 

[Magooch]

I'm not ever really one to advocate for full-blown tanking per se. But like in the case of the Steelers, I think it can be easy to get stuck in that spot of good but not good enough. And you have to ask yourself if that's a place where you're comfortable staying...

If I'm a Steelers fan I'm thinking long and hard about my prospects for this upcoming season and what the future looks like beyond that. Like I said before, you have Allar and Howard with virtually no experience, or Rudolph outside of Rodgers. Do you risk just riding into the season with one of those young guys as the starter and hope for the best? Do you worry that that sort of "thrown to the wolves" experience will ruin their prospects?

On the other hand next year is being viewed (at least early on) as a fairly loaded up, elite QB draft class. You've got guys like Arch Manning, Dante Moore, Julian Sayin, etc... Are the wins that Rodgers might gain you worth playing yourself out of a spot where you can pick one of those guys? Because then you're basically right back to where you were this offseason, except presumably no vet "bridge" QB to go forward with...

I guess my thinking is kind of like...if you think you have ANY kind of promise in Allar or Howard, maybe you just let them battle it out in camp and give one of them the starting job this year. Best-case scenario you uncover a "diamond in the rough" and one of these guys shines when given the opportunity. You realize you have a QB you can build around going forward and are free to invest wherever else is necessary. Worst-case scenario they crash and burn and you stumble into a top draft spot where you can still come away with one of the top QBs in the draft as a consolation prize. But like with last season, and IMO with a stronger AFC north around them this season, WITH Rodgers you run the risk of getting the worst of all scenarios: you get enough wins that you play yourself out of a top draft spot, you don't go on a deep postseason run, and you're without Rodgers next year and entering the offseason with the same exact QB room that you seemingly weren't confident to move forward in this season....

And I say all of this as a huge Rodgers fan and someone who loves to watch him play, hopefully for as long as possible. I just don't know if it makes a ton of sense for their particular situation looking big picture.

 

[DoURant]

I saw an early rankings on QB for next year, and there are 8 QB's in the Top 32, that would be crazy if that many went in the 1st Rd... not to mention, what a great year for the Packers to not have a 1st rd pick, again.

 

[gopkrs]

The Steelers have Rodgers I guess. They will be playing him

 

[Magooch]

This piece from ESPN more or less summed up my thoughts on the matter...

Why didn't the Steelers try harder to upgrade at quarterback?​

This is a good question. I really think they should be trying harder at that position than they have been since the end of Ben Roethlisberger's career in 2021. The answer here seems to be that they liked what they got out of Aaron Rodgers last season, believe he can do it again and thought that running it back with him was their best course of action.

No team seems to enjoy its status quo as much as the Steelers do. Frankly, you can see why. They haven't had a losing season since 2003. They've made the playoffs 17 times this century. No team has won more Super Bowls than the Steelers. They're consistent contenders, year in and year out -- there is almost never a game in which they don't have something to play for....

What irks Steelers fans is the recent inability to rise above the status quo. Pittsburgh hasn't won a playoff game since January 2017. It hasn't won more than 10 games in a season since 2020. It hasn't been to the Super Bowl in 15 years and hasn't won it in 17. It might be time for the Steelers to get outside of their comfort zone and try to find a quarterback solution that isn't just a bandage.

Maybe Will Howard or Drew Allar ends up being the solution. But if that happens, it won't be because the Steelers stretched to get them. Maybe the Steelers finally have a lousy season and find their solution at the top of the 2027 draft. But if that happens, it would be because their plan didn't work. For now, they're once again willing to wait on a 42-year-old who hasn't been a top-20 quarterback by QBR since 2021 because he's competent enough to keep them afloat.

Source

 

[OldSchool101]

Not sure the Steelers really had that much of a real chance to jump start unless you are actually recommending blowing the season for a higher draft pick. Us for instance. I was thinking all along that next year should be the year. But seeing what we have done, I'm excited to see the season start. I'm still not enamored with the O Line. Wish we would have improved more there. Tough for me to get real excited about a 5th rounder there.

Yeah I know it’s hard to say at OL because we hadn’t seen a proven, finished product. I get that part.

I do think not having the more typical 2 or 3 Rookies is advantageous. The 1 Rookie we do have is a highly athletic, pure Interior Lineman that has virtually no pressure to come in a perform this year. If he does he’s a bonus.

Now Rodgers got some legit help on both OL and skill positions.

 

[milani]

That's a good way to look at it. Watson seemed to spark the offense when he came back last season from a 10-month ACL rehab.

And in Parsons' absence, and with Gary traded, there will be a lot of competition at Edge. It's a great opportunity for LVN to have a breakout year, and rookie Dennis-Sutton will get more snaps. All of the Edge/LB guys will have a great chance to show off their pressure/sack skills.

And I think the Packers will make the playoffs without a lot of trouble. Just like prior years, the question is how far will they go?

Although Kraft will be back sooner it is a big blow to the defense without Micah. At least the team can prepare for it. And if our new DC can somehow weather the storm he deserves an accolade. Let us hope our offense puts up 28-30 a game for the first half. And with a decent kicker FGs can really help. But more than likely it will be tough sledding on the other side of the ball for a while. Be nice if our first 6 or 7 opponents were not the offensive powerhouses.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Unless you are looking for it, I don't think you see a whole lot on Rodgers. I don't anyway. Obviously he doesn't shy away from the media but it doesn't seem to me like he sits around thinking about how he can get his name on the news.

That's true. Being from WI and Packer fans, we give the subject more attention than it deserves.

 

[Heyjoe4]

Although Kraft will be back sooner it is a big blow to the defense without Micah. At least the team can prepare for it. And if our new DC can somehow weather the storm he deserves an accolade. Let us hope our offense puts up 28-30 a game for the first half. And with a decent kicker FGs can really help. But more than likely it will be tough sledding on the other side of the ball for a while. Be nice if our first 6 or 7 opponents were not the offensive powerhouses.

Agreed. There is talent at Edge/LB in addition to Parsons. Dennis-Sutton was drafted for Edge and Hargrave was acquired for iDL and is know to get pressure on QBs.

Even so, the team will need to win with offense this season. To your point milani, weathering the "Parsonsless" part of the season will be important.

 

[rmontro]

Even so, the team will need to win with offense this season. To your point milani, weathering the "Parsonsless" part of the season will be important.

I would love to see the offense have more zing this season. It had its moments last year, but too often it seemed stale and flat.

 

[DoURant]

I would love to see the offense have more zing this season. It had its moments last year, but too often it seemed stale and flat.

I would think the injuries to Watson on IR starting the season, then Reed missing the middle, and finally Kraft having season ending surgery didn't help, plus Jacobs was nursing an injury for most of the season. Always having one of our top offensive weapons off the field, and sometimes two, every game, will effect that.

 

[rmontro]

I would think the injuries to Watson on IR starting the season, then Reed missing the middle, and finally Kraft having season ending surgery didn't help, plus Jacobs was nursing an injury for most of the season. Always having one of our top offensive weapons off the field, and sometimes two, every game, will effect that.

True, but there will always be injuries.

 

[milani]

I would love to see the offense have more zing this season. It had its moments last year, but too often it seemed stale and flat.

You might see more fly patterns. This could be a modern version of the Run And Shoot.

 

[Heyjoe4]

I would love to see the offense have more zing this season. It had its moments last year, but too often it seemed stale and flat.

Good point. The offense has a lot of talent. Consistency has been lacking, and I hope that turns around this year and they put up a lot of points.

 

[Heyjoe4]

True, but there will always be injuries.

Injuries are just an opportunity for guys who have showed promise to get the snaps to prove it. That didn't happen last year on offense or defense.

 

[Heyjoe4]

You might see more fly patterns. This could be a modern version of the Run And Shoot.

Yeah I've been surprised that MLF doesn't run moe slant routes, especially with the very fast Watson and Golden. They will have their chance this year.

MLF seems to love the jet sweep, yet it's rare it produces any big plays, no matter who carries the ball.

 

[milani]

Injuries are just an opportunity for guys who have showed promise to get the snaps to prove it. That didn't happen last year on offense or defense.

The only one who got his name in the books was Havrisil.