Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images
Despite not being a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, the iconic NFL franchise seemed to allow mercurial free agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers to dictate their picks during the 2025 NFL Draft. Despite clearly being in need of a quarterback, the Steelers did not select one, Will Howard, until the sixth round.
According to Brooke Pryor, the Pittsburgh Steelers reporter for ESPN, the team’s strategy during the 2025 NFL Draft suggests that controversial 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers factored into their decision.
The last time the NFL world heard from Rodgers was a couple of weeks ago when he was on The Pat McAfee Show, where he used his airtime to not only rip the New York Jets but also seem generally noncommittal about playing next season, citing the difficulties currently faced by some in his inner circle.
Despite all of this, ESPN suggests the Steelers’ 2025 draft was clearly constructed with Rodgers in mind.
“Aaron Rodgers isn’t a member of the Steelers, but the team assembled their 2025 draft class as if he soon would be. Despite the Steelers’ repeated insistence that Rodgers would not influence their draft strategy, their actions in the 2025 speak louder than the words uttered by team brass. Passing on a quarterback four times before finally selecting 24-year-old developmental prospect Will Howard out of Ohio State in the sixth round, suggests Rodgers was very much present in their decision-making process.” [via ESPN]
“We’re still kind of getting the same signals that we’ve been getting recently. He does want to come here, so I do think we may get word soon,” team owner and president Art Rooney II told Steelers Nation Radio on Friday night, the second day of the 2025 NFL Draft.
In addition to former Ohio State quarterback and rookie draft pick Will Howard, the Steelers’ quarterback room also currently consists of Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson.