Ex-NFL GM Urges Steelers To Move On From Aaron Rodgers: ‘It’s Over’

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers hasn’t expressed any desire to continue playing, but the Pittsburgh Steelers are still hopeful.

Since the Steelers rejected every alternative option and tossed all their eggs in the Rodgers basket this offseason, the organization has dug itself a hole. It’s been a complete wait game with presumably minimal communication between Rodgers and Pittsburgh, now four weeks removed from their free agency meeting. Therefore, it’s time for the franchise to accept the (very) possible reality moving forward this offseason.

Perhaps Rodgers is done for good, and former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum pleaded with the Steelers to move on.

“He’s giving us the answers to the test,” Tannenbaum said last week on ESPN’s “First Take.” “… Do you want your battlefield commander to be wallowing, looking at the Pacific Ocean saying, ‘I’m not sure if I wanna play.’ Coach (Bill) Parcells used to say, ‘When a player is talking about being retired, they are.’ And if you want to be a winning, front-line quarterback withstanding the rigors of a 17-game regular season, you want somebody that’s in Pittsburgh right now in the offseason program, getting to know DK Metcalf, George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth.”

Rodgers is notoriously high-maintenance as he’s been ever since he departed the Green Bay Packers and failed miserably to bounce back from a torn Achilles suffered two years ago, debuting as quarterback of the New York Jets. The 41-year-old’s influence presumably led to the firing of Robert Saleh, its aggressive trade deadline approach and it still wasn’t enough for Rodgers to lead the team to the playoffs.

Unsurprisingly, the Jets had had enough and parted ways with Rodgers at the start of the offseason.

Pittsburgh had Justin Fields and Russell Wilson, already experienced playing under Tomlin’s staff, but elected to allow the duo to walk away in free agency. Fields, ironically enough, signed with the Jets and Wilson joined the New York Giants. Meanwhile, the Steelers currently have Mason Rudolph — a fringe starting quarterback option — as their best available candidate for the time being. That’s not a good place to be.

“It’s over, guys,” Tannenbaum continued. “We want people, ironically, what Mike Tomlin would say, ‘We want volunteers, not hostages.’ This is a guy that’s disinterested in being an NFL quarterback, which is fine. He’s earned that right. He’s made hundreds of millions of dollars. It’s over. We are drafting our next quarterback.”

The Steelers could still target a quarterback in Thursday’s 2025 NFL Draft, and even that’s risky considering they haven’t won a playoff game in nine years and the fanbase is losing its patience.

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