Aaron Rodgers has not yet confirmed if he will sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and it seems that Mike Tomlin is growing tired of the delay. According to a report by Ian Rapoport, Shedeur Sanders’ visit to the city is the first major decision to pressure Rodgers, signaling that time and patience are running out.
“The visit is not nothing. It’s something. I don’t think this is a message to Aaron Rodgers. The Steelers don’t need to do that. But, if it was, I would say the message is: ‘You are now on the clock.’ Because the Steelers have been very patient with Aaron Rodgers. Free agency was a thousand years ago. It’s the middle of April, still don’t have a decision. Only real deadline is the draft.”
Although the Steelers believe that Rodgers is the ideal man to compete for the Super Bowl next season, they cannot put their future plans on hold when the team has spent years searching for Ben Roethlisberger’s successor as franchise quarterback.
Who will be Steelers next starting QB?
Aaron Rodgers is the priority to be the next starting quarterback for the Steelers, but if he continues to take time in deciding, the alternative plan is Mason Rudolph leading the transition and drafting a top prospect early in the draft.
In light of this scenario, Rapoport admits that the scheduled visit of Shedeur Sanders to Pittsburgh was not only meant to talk to the young star, but also to make it clear to Rodgers that there are several alternative paths if he doesn’t decide to sign soon.
“By the Steelers bringing in Shedeur Sanders, they made two points. One, if Rodgers doesn’t come to the Steelers, they’re probably going to have to draft a quarterback somewhere. And the other part of this is like, ‘Rodgers, if you tell us after the draft, we’re gonna have to protect ourselves.’ So, he’s a little bit on the clock too. That’s kind of the deadline (draft day). Maybe we get the news about Rodgers right around then, but it has to come soon.”
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