The Pittsburgh Steelers still don't have a quarterback, and Aaron Rodgers still hasn't signed with an NFL team.
Team ownership has remained relentlessly optimistic that a deal will get done with the four-time MVP heading into his age-42 campaign. However, the NFL draft is now approximately just a week and a half away, and the clock on solidifying the QB room is ticking louder with each passing day.
Whether Rodgers will be in the Steelers' locker room or not could prove a major factor in how the they ultimately approach the position, both in the draft (they hold the No. 21 overall pick in round one) and/or via the remaining options on the free-agent and trade markets.
ESPN reporters Brooke Pryor and Kevin Seifert examined the viable choices remaining for Pittsburgh should Rodgers dash the franchise's hopes of joining forces in 2025.
"The pool of available free agent quarterbacks and potential trade candidates is limited. Joe Flacco and Carson Wentz are the Steelers' best options among available free agent quarterbacks, while Atlanta's Kirk Cousins could be the most realistic trade target," they wrote on April 2. "Cousins has a no-trade clause and is due $27.5 million guaranteed this season, and another $10 million roster bonus due in 2026, making him difficult to move."
Flacco is now off the board, as he recently reunited with the Cleveland Browns on a one-year contract worth $4 million. Cousins was a viable candidate for Cleveland as well, depending on the parameters of any hypothetical deal.
The Falcons have little call to keep Cousins on the roster at his current salary after benching him in the middle of last season for then-rookie Michael Penix Jr. However, the team chose to pay Cousins a $10 million roster bonus in March rather than release him outright.
Pittsburgh could theoretically make a deal with Atlanta in which the Falcons pay a meaningful hunk of Cousins' $27.5 million base salary in 2025 and get a mid- or late-round draft pick back in return. That scenario doesn't make sense for the Steelers if they sign Rodgers, but it could be the best option this season if Rodgers ends up elsewhere or opts to retire.
Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson are currently the only two QBs on Pittsburgh's roster.
