Every day that passes is another day the New York Jets should be thankful they didn’t cater to Aaron Rodgers for another offseason.
The 41-year-old Rodgers can’t make up his mind as to whether or not he wants to continue his professional football career. New York cut him loose officially in March, absorbing a $49 million dead cap hit to simply move on from a hectic two-year run.
It’s been nearly two months since the Jets signed Justin Fields to be their new starting quarterback, and Rodgers is still keeping at least one team on hold. That team is the Pittsburgh Steelers, who seem to still be holding out hope that Rodgers can rediscover some of his old magic.
One NFL writer believes that the Steelers’ draft strategy may have been aimed at catering toward Rodgers.
On Monday, Mike Jones of The Athletic wrote that the Steelers waiting until the sixth round to take a quarterback may increase Pittsburgh’s odds of signing Rodgers, even though it could obviously hurt them if he decides not to sign there.
“The Pittsburgh Steelers continue to pine for Rodgers, who had pined unsuccessfully for the Minnesota Vikings, but how much longer will this watch continue?” Jones wrote. “The Steelers didn’t draft a quarterback until the sixth round, when they selected Ohio State’s Will Howard.
“That could make Rodgers feel a little more secure in joining them. But, one never can tell with Rodgers, who said recently he has been dealing with some personal matters and has no timeline for his decision.”
At this point, the Jets don’t mind if Rodgers signs with an AFC rival. They can’t afford to worry about him anymore, because they’ve been so bad for so long that every ounce of mental fortitude has to be directed at turning the franchise around and breaking a 14-year playoff drought.
But would it be frustrating to Jets fans if Rodgers succeeded in Pittsburgh after taking his sweet time to sign there? You bet it would. And equally satisfying to see him torpedo a conference rival.
