The Steelers and QB Aaron Rodgers have agreed to a one-year deal, according to multiple reports, with $22 million in guarantees and a max value of $25 million. Rodgers will now return for his second season in Pittsburgh and reunite with new HC Mike McCarthy for the first time since 2018. McCarthy served as Packers HC from 2006 -- the year after Green Bay drafted Rodgers -- until 2018, a span that included 11 seasons with Rodgers as the lead QB.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero: “Aaron Rodgers is expected to practice Monday when OTAs begin and through the rest of the spring. He’s in.”
ESPN’s Adam Schefter: “Rodgers didn’t commit to the Steelers last year until their mandatory minicamp in June. This year he will be there earlier.”
That earlier commitment seems at least a little meaningful, given how Rodgers has slow-played most of his recent offseasons. It’s also fair to assume the McCarthy connection helped, especially with Rodgers signing a deal whose $25 million max would rank just 17th at the position in annual average value this season.
Rodgers averaged a tremendous 4,585.2 passing yards, 36.3 TDs, and just 8.5 INTs per 17 games across 11 years of starting under McCarthy in Green Bay. We’re certainly betting on the 42-year-old approaching his prime production, but that history can’t hurt.
Rodgers also returns to an offense that added WR Michael Pittman Jr., drafted WR Germie Bernard in Round 2, and signed RB Rico Dowdle, who caught 39 passes the last time he played for McCarthy (with the 2024 Cowboys).
Add that crew to WR DK Metcalf, TE Pat Freiermuth, and RB Jaylen Warren, and it’s a better set of pass catchers than Rodgers found last year.
Rodgers ranked just 26th among QBs in fantasy points per game last season and 20th the year before, his final season with the Jets. His 2025 also included just four top-12 weeks.
Rodgers isn’t likely to deliver a huge fantasy impact this season, but he could easily supply a few more starter-level weeks and could pay off as a streaming option or late QB2 in best ball and multi-QB formats.
The rest of the skill-position players clearly benefit from this agreement, although we’ve been assuming Rodgers would land in Pittsburgh since the initial projections came out.
Rodgers’ return solidifies Metcalf and Pittman as values at best ball ADPs of WR37 and WR48, respectively. The RBs also make for fine best ball options, with Warren at RB30 in Underdog Fantasy ADP and Dowdle at RB33.
I also like Freiermuth as a best ball TE3 at TE29 on Underdog and TE28 on Drafters. He probably won’t see enough target volume to matter in redraft, though.
Expect Rodgers to climb at least a little from his QB30 best ball ADP. Although nearly everyone expected him to re-sign with the Steelers, there’s always at least a slight adjustment in the draft market when an expected move comes to fruition.
I wouldn’t bet on the rest of the Steelers moving much right away, though we’ll see what practice buzz might do as we move into and through the summer.
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