Steelers Now
The Pittsburgh Steelers squad will arrive for OTAs on Tuesday, May 27th, and with that in mind, plenty of questions are left unanswered following an eventful offseason in the Steel City. With Mike Tomlin’s group looking to snap an eight-year playoff win drought, there are certain troublesome areas that are worth digging into. Today, we’ll run through the biggest and most intriguing questions remaining as phase three of the offseason program is set to kick off.
For months now, it’s seemed like Aaron Rodgers eventual commitment to the Steelers has felt like more of a question of “when” instead of “if.” That still rings true today, after the four-time league MVP has been playfully cryptic about his playing future in recent public appearances. In a perfect world, Pittsburgh would love to have the person leading their offense lead them through OTAs as well. The franchise has been very open about remaining patient as they await his decision, but the start of mandatory minicamp (June 10th) could, and likely should, serve as a hard deadline.
I've always appreciated Rodgers ball handling mechanics and attention to detail in this regard. Real "teach-tape" level stuff.
And then every once in a while, he does stuff like this… Which reminds you of what he used to be at the peak of his powers.
This throw is bananas. pic.twitter.com/TwE7osk4qB
— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) March 23, 2025
Like most legendary signal callers, Rodgers has a very particular way that he likes to operate behind center. As he’s aged, he prefers to get the ball out as quickly as possible (2.65 seconds time-to-throw in 2024), something that will be a drastic change from the quarterbacks that were on the roster a year ago. He likes to play in rhythm, and he’s also very big on the details, from pre-snap hand signals to specific landmarks in the passing game. The marriage between Rodgers’ unique style of ball and Arthur Smith’s offense won’t be a seamless integration and will take time to mesh together. The 41-year-old’s best chance to go out on top is if the offense hits the ground running from the jump, and it would behoove them to have as much time as possible to work through the kinks.
After trading the enigmatic George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys shortly after the conclusion of the 2025 NFL Draft, the Steelers coaching staff is left in a similar predicament they were in last season: without a viable secondary option in the passing game. Behind the scenes, they’ll assuredly be working the phones for an upgrade, but their urgency could depend on how the existing options perform in this phase. It should be noted that Calvin Austin III took a nice step forward last fall as a route runner while also providing necessary splash plays down the field. The hiccup is that 77% of his production came...
