Behind the Steel Curtain
For fans, it must have felt like a drawn-out three-month courtship between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Aaron Rodgers this offseason. Many were shocked that the team didn’t draft a quarterback earlier than the sixth round, where they selected Ohio State signal-caller Will Howard.
It’s now been revealed that Mike Tomlin didn’t have the same level of anxiety.
In an episode of Ryan Clark’s The Pivot podcast, Tomlin said that he “knew something” about where Rodgers stood, after being asked why the team didn’t aggressively pursue a quarterback in the draft.
“Everything that we talked about through our conversations in the spring, I’m watching him live out right now in this training camp setting,” Tomlin said. “I believed him when he said it, but it’s fun to watch play out.”
Then, with a grin, Tomlin admitted he knew the four-time MVP would be a Steeler.
“And you’re right, I knew something.”
While many outside of the organization were panicking, Pittsburgh showed patience throughout the process, and the front office never gave anything away directly.
In his pre-draft interview, GM Omar Khan also seemed to also have confidence when discussing the quarterback situation, which at the time only rostered Skylar Thompson and Mason Rudolph:
“We discussed in Palm Beach a couple of weeks ago. We go to camp with four quarterbacks. Right now, we have two on the roster. All options are on the table on how we acquire those last two. I assure you we’ll have four when we get to Latrobe.”
The two additions were Howard, above, and of course, Rodgers, who has said on record that this is likely his last season. The Steelers have signaled they are “all-in” for 2025, and without Rodgers, those words would have fallen on deaf ears.
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