The Steelers have Aaron Rodgers under contract in time for minicamp, meaning the team will have its expected quarterback starter for 2025. Other options received consideration this offseason, though, and it appears at least two of them were higher on Pittsburgh’s wishlist. 
During an appearance on Get Up, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Rodgers represented the Steelers’ third choice at the quarterback spot (video link). Schefter notes Pittsburgh first attempted to work out a trade with the Rams for Matthew Stafford this offseason. The Super Bowl winner wound up remaining in Los Angeles on another revised contract, but a number of suitors showed interest in a trade before that agreement was reached.
The Steelers were among them, with a February report linking them to Stafford. Pittsburgh checked in with the Rams on that front, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated writes, but the team doubted a departure from Los Angles was realistic. Likewise, interest was shown in Kirk Cousins, but at no point was he regarded as a preferred option to Rodgers.
Per Schefter and Breer, the Steelers’ efforts were aimed first at re-signing Justin Fields before serious Rodgers consideration took place. Pittsburgh was well known to have interest in keeping one of Fields or 2024 starter Russell Wilson for the coming season. The Jets – having released Rodgers with the arrival of a new HC-GM combination – provided Fields with an unquestioned starter’s role on a two-year pact, however. Once he agreed to head to New York, Rodgers became one of the best veteran options on the market.
The 41-year-old visited the Steelers early in free agency, and he and head coach Mike Tomlin remained in touch throughout the spring. As Breer notes, that communication played a key role in Pittsburgh’s ongoing confidence that a deal would eventually be worked out. He adds much of the legwork regarding the contract details have been in place since March, leaving only certain aspects of its structure to be finalized recently.
Rodgers will receive $10MM in guarantees and $5.85MM in incentives could increase his earnings for the campaign. The four-time MVP’s pact stands in contrast to what Fields received from the Jets ($40MM over two years, including $30MM fully guaranteed) and Stafford’s new Rams arrangement ($84MM across the 2025 and ’26 seasons, up from the $58MM he was originally owed). At a discounted price compared to the top of the position’s market in particular, it will be interesting to see how Rodgers fares with his third career team.
Stafford declined to join teams such as the Raiders and Giants despite their willingness to reach the $50MM-per-year mark. Fields, meanwhile, understandably departed on the open market after Tomlin elected to keep Wilson ahead of him on the depth chart once both passers were healthy last season. It took until well after the draft and through much of OTAs for the Rodgers acquisition to become official, but Pittsburgh’s apparent Plan C under center is now set to take shape.