In case you’ve been hiding under a rock, last week Aaron Rodgers went on the Pat McAfee show and told everyone what they already knew – that the 2025 season with the Steelers will likely be his last.
- And of course that’s all anyone in Steelers Nation was talking about.
Here are four (not so) random reflections on Aaron Rodgers and the R word
Aaron Rodgers 1st practice with the Steelers. Photo Credit: Karl Roser, Steelers.com
1. And This is Supposed to News?
So how is it that a 20 year NFL veteran and 41 year old quarterback saying that the coming season will likely be his last qualifies as “news.”
HAD Rodger had said he wanted to play “a couple-of-three or so more seasons,” THAT would have been news. Instead, he told us what we knew, and we ended up talking about it for week.
- There’s no secret as to why.
The NFL’s media ecosystem has a voracious need for page visits, clicks and podcast/video views that demands to be fed. Hence, a 41 year old quarterback saying he’ll probably retire after 17 weeks of getting hit by 300 pound plus 20 something is now “news.”
2. The Story Line Is Set
Credit former Steelers offensive lineman Trai Essex for saying the quiet part out loud:
Gonna be honest…not a fan of A Rod announcing this could be his last season before camp even starts. With that mindset, how will he react when things get inevitably tough? Will he have the intestinal fortitude to fight and persevere or will he just be like meh, a few more…
— Trai Essex (@TraiDay79) June 24, 2025
One way or another, the story line is set.
If Rodgers struggles out of the gate, it will be, “…its pretty obvious that Rodgers should have listened to his inner voice and gotten on with his ‘Life’s Work.’”
If Rodgers starts OK then hits a midseason slump the “…after starting strong in September, Rodgers struggles began as twilight became scarce, as the changing colors of the leaves signaled that they, like Rodgers would soon be moving on to something else.”
Or, if Rodgers, like Russell Wilson before him, should play well until fading down the stretch they’ll say, “….as Myles Garrett threw him down for a third and final time on the turf at Cleveland, the look on Rodgers’ face said it all, ‘he’d clearly wishes was spending the holidays in Malibu instead of Cleveland.’”
And this will happen independent of what comes out of Rodgers’ mouth. Rest assured, the slightest stray comment that even hits at a smidge of frustration on Rodger’s part will be magnified 10 times over to fit the “Rodgers wishes he’d retired instead of playing” narrative.
You’d better believe that commentators such as Mike Jones, Andrew Fillipponi and Tim Benz have this quote bookmarked, and will trot as soon as an opportunity presents itself.
So be it.
3. Consider the Alternative
Imagine, for a moment, if had Rodgers stated his plan was to play for several more seasons.
- The reaction would have been just as swift and probably far more harsh.
You can easily imagine the leads along the lines of, “…after three years of wandering in the wilderness following Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, the franchise continues to refuse to pull off the band aid and embrace renewal.”
Art Rooney II and Ben Roethlisberger embrace. Photo Credit: Steelers.com, Karl Roser
And that’s only how the immediate narrative would have gone before Rodgers has taken his first snap. You can imagine how it would have evolved once the Steelers begin hitting stumbling blocks.
4. A Potential Upside to It All
At the end of the day, this was a question Aaron Rodgers was going to get, and it says here he gave the right answer. Yes, it is certainly possible that, if things get tough, if say, Troy Fautanu fails to stay healthy and/or Broderick Jones doesn’t develop and Rodgers takes a pounding he’ll regret his decision.
- But if we know anything about Aaron Rodgers, its that he’s a competitor.
So when he says this is probably his final year, he’s most likely signaling that he’s planning on leaving it all out on the field.
And that is something Steelers Nation should welcome.
