The Pittsburgh Steelers are still waiting for Aaron Rodgers to make a move—one that he keeps prolonging. Eventually, the Steelers may grow tired of waiting and decide to move on. While Pittsburgh might have a backup plan, there is no guarantee Rodgers will end up playing for the Steelers.
Rodgers has been expected to finalize a deal for quite some time now. One of the earliest expectations for a deal was right after the NFL schedule was released. However, with OTAs underway, Rodgers is nowhere in sight of signing with an NFL team.
“If you’re Rodgers, don’t you just at this point wait until after the schedule is out?” NBC Sports’ Mike Florio said. “Because it’s not like the Steelers are gonna get fewer primetime games than what they’d otherwise get.”
Despite all signs pointing toward Pittsburgh, Rodgers still hasn’t verbally committed to any deal.
“I have been told that he has not affirmatively told the Steelers that he’s coming,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero said. “… There’s all these signs that he’s coming but he has not affirmatively said ‘Hey, June 9, book me the ticket. I’m coming in and I’m going to join this team.’ That has not happened as of this point.”
The reasons behind Rodgers not signing anywhere remain unclear, but one theory suggests he may be waiting to see if something happens to Vikings quarterback JJ McCarthy.
“I can’t say he’s rooting for [McCarthy] to get hurt, it’s just sort of a back-of-mind feeling of that maybe he’s sort of waiting that out. It’s hard with Aaron Rodgers because he’s so unpredictable and this is his first foray into free agency, so I can’t even begin to get into his mind,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said. “Look, he’s a smart guy. He sees a team with a good offense, a really good offensive coach. That’s pretty attractive to him I would assume.”
Rodgers could have had a master plan all along, but for now, his intentions remain puzzling. In Minnesota, Rodgers would be surrounded by an exciting offense—and many are watching to see what he decides next.