Sportsnaut
A new report claims the Pittsburgh Steelers are not at all concerned about their current quarterback situation, even if they don’t sign Aaron Rodgers this offseason.
Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin lucked into having future Hall-of-Famer Ben Roethlisberger as his QB from day one on the job. However, since his retirement four years ago, the coach has struggled to find a suitable replacement. And at times, he has given the impression he does not value the position as much as he should. That has been even more apparent this offseason.
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Despite some strong options on the free agent and trade market this spring, the Steelers’ current QB room consists of journeymen Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson, and rookie Will Howard. They have been linked to NFL legend Aaron Rodgers for weeks, but his signing is far from a guarantee. However, according to ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano, the Pittsburgh brass aren’t in a panic over their QB situation because they actually like the players they have, with or without Rodgers.
“In talking to sources about this situation, I don’t get the sense that the Steelers are as concerned about their quarterback room as everyone else,” he wrote. “First of all, they remain optimistic that Rodgers will sign and be their starter. And that he’ll play better than he did last season for the Jets. Now that he’s one year further removed from his 2023 Achilles injury.
“Second of all, they like Rudolph. And have fresh memories of him saving their 2023 season and leading them to the playoffs when 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett struggled… It’s an interesting strategy in a league in which teams tend to fall all over themselves to overspend and over-insure at the position. But if the Steelers believe in their defense and their run game, they don’t think they need superstar production out of the quarterback position to have success in 2025.”
Graziano added that the organization hoped to find a long-term option in either this year or next year’s draft. After going through the evaluation process, they seem to believe there will be better prospects in the 2026 class than were available in April.
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