Art Rooney II Says 'Positive Signs' Suggest Aaron Rodgers Could Sign Steelers Contract

Pittsburgh Steelers owner Art Rooney II expressed confidence Tuesday that free-agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers will ultimately choose to sign with the Steelers.

According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Rooney said he has a good feeling about landing Rodgers and that signs are "pointing in that direction."

Per ESPN's Brooke Pryor, Rooney added that there are "positive signs" regarding Rodgers and the Steelers reaching an agreement.

Rodgers is the last viable starting quarterback remaining on the open market after Sam Darnold signed with the Seattle Seahawks, Justin Fields signed with the New York Jets and both Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston signed with the New York Giants.

Of the teams with a quarterback need, the Steelers are most likely to want to fill it with a veteran like Rodgers since they reached the playoffs last season and won't be able to draft an immediate starter with the No. 21 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

With that in mind, the Steelers are playing the waiting game with Rodgers, but Rooney suggested to Pryor they need an answer sooner than later, saying he would wait "not forever, but a little while longer."

Once the Giants signed Wilson and Winston, it essentially whittled Rodgers' options down to only the Steelers or Minnesota Vikings.

The Vikings still need to add a quarterback after losing both Darnold and Daniel Jones in free agency, but they selected J.J. McCarthy in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft and seem content to roll with him as the starter.

At 41 years of age, it is somewhat difficult to envision Rodgers signing up for a situation in which he would have to compete for the starting job, especially since the Steelers would almost certainly hand it to him.

Rodgers met with the Steelers for six hours at their team facility two weeks ago, per ESPN's Adam Schefter (h/t Pryor), so both sides are familiar with each other as talks progress.

On her Scoop City podcast last week, Dianna Russini of The Athletic said people she talked to believed Rodgers' preference was to sign with the Vikings, that would require reciprocity from Minnesota.

Assuming the Vikings don't change their stance on McCarthy being the starter, it is Pittsburgh-or-bust for Rodgers, and it feels like an inevitable union.

The Steelers may not be as close to Super Bowl contention as the Vikings, but they did reach the playoffs last season, boast a strong defense and can provide Rodgers with one of the top wide receivers duos in the game in DK Metcalf and George Pickens.