Ex-NFL GM says Aaron Rodgers will be ‘irrelevant by Thanksgiving’ with Steelers

One of the more talked-about moves in the NFL as of late was the Pittsburgh Steelers’ decision to ink quarterback Aaron Rodgers to a one-year deal. Rodgers is one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in the history of the NFL, but he’s not getting any younger at 41 years old and also hasn’t been part of a winning team in a little while.

Former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum thinks the lack of collective success Rodgers has experienced in recent years will carry over into the 2025 campaign with Pittsburgh. According to him, Rodgers will be “irrelevant by Thanksgiving.”

It’s interesting that Tannenbaum evidently doesn’t see the Steelers having a successful season, as they qualified for the playoffs a season ago after they won 10 of their 17 games in the 2024 season. The Steelers have also reached the playoffs in four of the last five seasons.

There will be no need for a starting quarterback competition, with Rodgers now the clear choice to lead the Steelers’ offense. Pittsburgh’s other quarterbacks on the roster are Skylar Thompson, Mason Rudolph and Will Howard.

Howard is a rookie and was a sixth-round pick by the Steelers in the 2025 NFL Draft. Thompson, for his part, has started just three regular-season games his entire career. As for Rudolph, he has a decent amount of experience to his name but threw the same number of interceptions as he did touchdowns across eight games and five starts with the Tennessee Titans last season.

Comparatively, Rodgers threw for almost 4,000 yards to go along with 28 touchdowns in 17 appearances with the New York Jets a season ago. His contributions didn’t pay dividends in the win column for the Jets, however, as they won just five of the 17 games Rodgers started.

Rodgers will have a chance to prove Tannenbaum as well as other doubters wrong when the 2025 season starts up for the Steelers. Pittsburgh will open its season with a matchup against Rodgers’ former team, the Jets, on Sept. 7. That will be a road contest for the Steelers at MetLife Stadium.