Brooke PryorMar 4, 2026, 04:53 PM ETCloseBrooke Pryor is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2019. She previously covered the Kansas City Chiefs for the Kansas City Star and the University of Oklahoma for The Oklahoman.Follow on XMultiple Authors
Aaron Rodgers tells McAfee no decision made on future yet (2:23)Aaron Rodgers joins Pat McAfee and touches lightly on his future with the Steelers and how much he respects their new coach Mike McCarthy. (2:23)
“I’ve had conversations with Omar [Khan]. I think Omar enjoyed having me there. I think the guys had a positive response to our time together, but again, there hasn’t been any deadlines set on me. There hasn’t been any contract floated in front of me for me to like, ‘Well, we’re giving you till March 8 to make a decision on this contract.’ There’s been nothing to that respect.”
“I don’t really want to say it has to be done by then,” Khan said when asked if he needed a decision by the start of free agency on March 11. “Would like to have an idea, but it just isn’t going to go like it did last year.
“… I think the circumstances are a little different, just conversations we had. I think neither side wants to have this drag on like it did last year.”
Rodgers, though, didn’t sound like he was in a hurry during his almost 90-minute appearance on McAfee’s program. Though he mentioned that he had been working out, Rodgers deflected when asked if he was working out because he planned to keep playing and instead joked that he was doing those because he wanted his wife to find him attractive.
“I’m trying to stay fit,” he said. “I mean, it’s harder when you get older, so you can’t take the same amount of time off as you used to. After so many seasons, I would take a few weeks off, a month off, month and a half. Now 42, just to stay in shape, you got to always be dialed in on the diet and sleep and workouts if you want to look the right way.”
He declined to give any specific updates on his plans for the upcoming season, although he did say he was intrigued by the idea of many of his old coaches and familiar faces from Green Bay joining McCarthy’s staff in Pittsburgh. Rodgers, of course, played under McCarthy with the Packers for 13 seasons, and the pair won Super Bowl XLV together.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say that was something that I enjoyed seeing,” Rodgers said of seeing people including offensive line coach James Campen and assistant offensive line coach Jahri Evans take jobs in Pittsburgh. “All those guys getting back together. It’s some of the guys that had the greatest impact on my career.
“… Obviously that would be a draw if I decided we’d go down that path. But again, it takes two to tango, and we’ll see what happens as we get into free agency and everything.”
Rodgers had high praise for McCarthy, too, and was complimentary of the Steelers’ decision to hire him to replace Mike Tomlin after Tomlin stepped down in January.
Rodgers also spent time during the interview praising Steelers’ 2025 sixth-round quarterback Will Howard, who missed most of the season after injuring the pinky in his throwing hand during training camp. Howard has drawn praise from numerous members of Steelers brass throughout the offseason including Khan and McCarthy. Rodgers affirmed his belief in him Wednesday.
“He was in my hip pocket for a bunch, and I loved it,” Rodgers said. “I really did. I’m a big Will Howard — not just fan as a human — but believer as a player, that when his time comes, he’s going to be more than capable of being, not just a consistent starter, but a guy who can stick in league for a long, long time. And it’s because of his mindset.”
Rodgers said that he has remained in touch with Howard and the rest of the quarterback room including Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson through a group chat, and he said that group and wide receiver Ben Skowronek were some of the people who made his season in Pittsburgh “special.”
Set to hit free agency in less than a week, the 42-year-old quarterback confirmed the Steelers hadn’t given him a deadline to inform them of his intentions for the 2026 season. Rodgers initially signed a one-year, $13.65 million contract with the team in June 2025 following a prolonged decision-making process. He ultimately went on to start 16 games and throw 24 touchdowns to seven interceptions, leading the Steelers to an AFC North title before a first-round playoff exit at the hands of the Houston Texans.
Aaron Rodgers tells McAfee no decision made on future yet (2:23)Aaron Rodgers joins Pat McAfee and touches lightly on his future with the Steelers and how much he respects their new coach Mike McCarthy. (2:23)
Aaron Rodgers joins Pat McAfee and touches lightly on his future with the Steelers and how much he respects their new coach Mike McCarthy. (2:23)
Brooke PryorMar 4, 2026, 04:53 PM ETCloseBrooke Pryor is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2019. She previously covered the Kansas City Chiefs for the Kansas City Star and the University of Oklahoma for The Oklahoman.Follow on XMultiple Authors
CloseBrooke Pryor is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2019. She previously covered the Kansas City Chiefs for the Kansas City Star and the University of Oklahoma for The Oklahoman.Follow on X