Aaron Rodgers is keeping the NFL attentive to his future as he remains mysterious about his next move. A Super Bowl champion believes the Pittsburgh Steelers should stick to Mason Rudolph, but Mike Tomlin is patiently giving A-Rod all the time he needs.
And while the 41-year-old’s silence doesn’t help, the feeling around the NFL is that it’s only a matter of when, and not if, that Rodgers joins the Steelers. And it appears that the 2025 schedule could play a part in his decision.
Former NFL wide receiver James Jones, who spent seven years (2007-2013) with Rodgers on the Green Bay Packers—being part of Rodgers’ first and so far only Super Bowl win (2011)—believes that the Steelers’ schedule for the 2025 NFL season might convince the quarterback to play in Pittsburgh.
“He should be juiced up with this schedule,” Jones said on The Facility, as quoted by Steeler Nation. “I’m not even talking about the Packers. The Packers, y’all split ways, that’s all good. We’ll see you again. They’ll probably celebrate him and all that stuff. But this Jets stuff, the way they disrespected him leaving down there.”
Aaron Rodgers walks off the field after a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium on October 20, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
The Steelers’ season opener for 2025 has given plenty to talk about. Even though Tomlin and company won’t be playing on prime time in Week 1, their first game of the year has a strong storyline connected to Rodgers.
see also
NFL News: Aaron Rodgers has reportedly chosen between Steelers and Saints as his next team
Steelers’ Week 1 game fuels the Rodgers rumors
With the Steelers set to visit the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in the first slate of games on Sunday, September 7, all eyes are on Rodgers’ potential matchup against his former team. Things didn’t end well between A-Rod and the Jets, making this an intriguing scenario.
During an appearance on the “Pat McAfee Show” in April, Rodgers revealed that the Jets made him fly to NY only to tell him they were planning to take a different direction at quarterback offseason:
“I was kind of shocked. Now I’m not shocked because I didn’t think that was a possibility. Listen, of course, if they want to move on, that’s totally fine, but shocked because I just flew across country. You could have told me this on the phone if we weren’t even going to have a conversation.”
Other games that could persuade Rodgers to play for Steelers in 2025
The Steelers will then have a number of prime time games in the 2025 NFL season, including a Week 8 “Sunday Night Football” showdown against the Green Bay Packers, with whom Rodgers spent nearly two decades before leaving for the Jets.
Tomlin and company will also play the Chicago Bears, a team that Rodgers dominated during his time at Lambeau Field, holding a 24-5 record against the NFC North franchise. Therefore, Jones may have a fair point. The Steelers’ 2025 schedule could indeed persuade Rodgers to play in Pittsburgh this year.
Steelers schedule: The full list of Pittsburgh’s 2025 NFL regular season games
- Week 1 (Sun, Sep 7): @ New York Jets (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 2 (Sun, Sep 14): vs Seattle Seahawks (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 3 (Sun, Sep 21): @ New England Patriots (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 4 (Sun, Sep 28): vs Minnesota Vikings (9:30 AM ET)
- Week 5: Bye week
- Week 6 (Sun, Oct 12): vs Cleveland Browns (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 7 (Thu, Oct 16): @ Cincinnati Bengals (8:15 PM ET)
- Week 8 (Sun, Oct 26): vs Green Bay Packers (8:20 PM ET)
- Week 9 (Sun, Nov 2): vs Indianapolis Colts (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 10 (Sun, Nov 9): @ Los Angeles Chargers (8:20 PM ET)
- Week 11 (Sun, Nov 16): vs Cincinnati Bengals (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 12 (Sun, Nov 23): @ Chicago Bears (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 13 (Sun, Nov 30): vs Buffalo Bills (4:25 PM ET)
- Week 14 (Sun, Dec 7): @ Baltimore Ravens (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 15 (Mon, Dec 15): vs Miami Dolphins (8:15 PM ET)
- Week 16 (Sun, Dec 21): @ Detroit Lions (4:25 PM ET)
- Week 17 (Sun, Dec 28): @ Cleveland Browns (1:00 PM ET)
- Week 18 (TBD): vs Baltimore Ravens (TBD)
