New Headline: Steelers Confirm Trade with Rodgers, Expect Sharp Improvement in Offense!

We’re less than a week into the NFL’s new league year — and less than one week into official free-agent signings — and it’s already abundantly clear that the Pittsburgh Steelers and Aaron Rodgers appear to be the best remaining option for one another. The only question now: Does Rodgers want to tack another year onto his NFL career? Aside from actually getting that answer — which will be on Rodgers’ timeline — the league’s free agency landscape and some of the moves in Pittsburgh make it clear that new head coach Mike McCarthy is being tasked with winning now.

That tracks with the read of several teams and NFL agents at the league’s annual scouting combine in late February, when the quarterback market was being calculated with the presumption that the 62-year old McCarthy and the Steelers were looking at two options: Running it back in 2026 with Rodgers as the starter, or pivoting into a pursuit of veteran Kirk Cousins while also leaving the door open for 2025 sixth-round pick Will Howard to make a run at the starting job in training camp. [ Enter Yahoo Fantasy Bracket Mayhem now for your shot at $50K ] Now in mid-March, those two avenues appear to be squarely on the table in Pittsburgh — with Rodgers having been in communication with McCarthy this offseason, while Cousins remains on the free-agent market waiting for options. It feels very similar to last year’s offseason for the Steelers, who patiently waited for Rodgers to make a commitment while other quarterback voids were filled across the league.

All the while, Pittsburgh moved forward in free agency and draft perpetration focusing on players who could help the team win now rather than lay the foundation for a reboot. The signing of free-agent cornerback Jamel Dean and trade for wideout Michael Pittman Jr. underscored that same design last week.

Dean will turn 30 in October and Pittman’s 29th birthday is in the same month, adding two more experienced veterans to a roster that is already laden with them. Both fit another year of a Rodgers window, as well as the Steelers’ hopes of maximizing the tail end of the prime years of edge rusher T. J.