The Pittsburgh Steelers have their starting quarterback for 2025 after the signing of Aaron Rodgers. However, there are no shortage of concerns that come with the 41-year-old signal-caller.
Not only is Rodgers coming off a down season, but he is as prone to injury as ever thanks to his advanced age. Luckily, the Steelers have a strong backup option in Mason Rudolph, who can keep the team afloat.
But there’s also a scenario where Rodgers simply doesn’t play well at all, and in the event that happens, the Steelers will be done for, unless they make a bold move for another starting quarterback at the trade deadline.
Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon doesn’t think the Steelers will just sit idly by and let their season go down the tubes if Rodgers struggles or gets hurt.
Instead, he predicts the Steelers will trade for Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield in that scenario.
Could a contender with quarterback issues decide to roll the dice on him taking off following a change of scenery? We won’t speculate on injuries, but the Steelers and Vikings both come to mind in the event that either the Aaron Rodgers experiment blows up quickly or J.J. McCarthy gets off to a horrible start in Minnesota.
We’ll lean toward the Vikes having a longer leash with their young quarterback, because who knows what will happen with the 41-year-old Rodgers.
A former No. 1 overall pick of the Cleveland Browns, Mayfield has resurrected his career with the Bucs in recent years, which landed him a $100 million contract.
Over his two seasons in Tampa, Mayfield has a pair of Pro Bowl nods and the Bucs have made the postseason in each campaign.
The Buccaneers will once again be pushing for the playoffs in 2025, and will do so in one of the worst divisions in the NFL. The only way they’d trade Mayfield, who has one more year left on his deal in 2026, is if things go horribly wrong.
Trading for Mayfield would make at least some sense for the Steelers, as the 30-year-old is better than Rudolph and is young enough to be a multi-year solution.
That said, the stuck-in-neutral Steelers would probably be better served letting the season play out and hitting the reset button in 2026, when they could find their quarterback of the future in the draft.
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