If the NFL's 2025 season began any day now, the Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback would be Mason Rudolph. The entire fan base has been left wondering for months if future Hall of Famer, Aaron Rodgers, will be coming to the Steel City. The veteran has left the entire league guessing as he continues to navigate the current options he has. He could retire or come to play for Head Coach Mike Tomlin with one of the most historic franchises in all of sports. Overall, the wait continues as many are anticipating him making a decision in the coming weeks, but no one really knows for sure.
The only reliable signal-caller that the Steelers have had during the 21st century has been Ben Roethlisberger. He retired at the end of the 2021 campaign following an incredible career in Pittsburgh. Fans still gets to keep tabs on the legendary quarterback because of his podcast, Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger. On a recent episode, he went into detail about why Rodgers leading the Steelers' offense could be problematic.
"Aaron's played in a West Coast system, like forever," Roethlisberger said. "From what I've been told, this is not a West Coast system. That's verbiage. That's terminology. Aaron is an incredibly smart young man, well not young, probably a smart man."
After changing his opinion on Rodgers' age in a joking manner, Roethlisberger continued to speak about why the hold-up could be causing more unnecessary issues for Tomlin and the coaching staff.
"He's an incredibly smart man so do I think he could pick it up? Absolutely. But there's also something to be said about being on the field with guys at practice to see how guys run routes, to do things to communicate, to let them hear your voice in the huddle, to hear your cadence, to hear your audibles. All that stuff. The coach and you need to get on the same page so when the coach is calling plays, he knows what you like and don't like... To me, that's a much much bigger deal."
Roethlisberger was a NFL quarterback for almost two decades and went through countless offseason programs and training camps. What he said absolutely makes sense and is a slight cause for concern.
The unsettling comments from Roethlisberger continued, as he said that he is pretty worried about Arthur Smith's offensive system in regards to how Rodgers fits in. It could be a bigger deal and something that is not being talked about enough.
"Not the fact that Aaron - Aaron can play the game, he can throw the ball, he can do whatever he needs to do," Roethlisberger said. "I'm not doubting Aaron's physical talents, but getting on the same page with guys that you've never played with before, that's a big deal, in an offense you've never [been in]. If this was his offense, that he'd been in before, I'd be like, 'Not a big deal.' But the fact that this is an offense that he doesn't know anything about, to me, it's a big deal."
When Rodgers made a very quiet trip to the Steel City to meet with the team's decision-makers, it was reported that Smith was in attendance as well. It can be assumed that this was arranged so the duo could have a more in-depth discussion about what the offense may look like if Rodgers is involved come the regular season.
Steelers Only Hurting Themselves Waiting For Rodgers
It's clear that Pittsburgh never really gave Rodgers a legitimate timeline for a decision. The veteran is known for beating to his own drum, but at the end of the day, the longer he takes to put pen to paper, the longer it will be before he begins to mesh with his new teammates. While Rodgers is one of the smartest individuals to ever play quarterback at the NFL level, he will have to learn a new style of system as well as quickly build rapport with players in the locker room.
