Aaron Rodgers, Tomlin, Steelers OC Reportedly Already Discussed How to Change Offense

Aaron Rodgers has "been on the phone a couple times" with new head coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith about the Steelers are going to "reconfigure the offense, find a sweet spot where Rodgers can still do all this stuff he likes to do at the line of scrimmage, still stay true to the system," as ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported on Sunday's SportsCenter.

"Teams I've talked to believe that Rodgers at this stage is a middle-of-the-pack quarterback," he added. "He's probably ranked 15-17 among the top 32. He's not that top-10 guy anymore, but the Steelers do believe that they're getting the best field vision from the pocket they've had since Ben Roethlisberger. They believe he's still got plenty of arm strength, and New York Jets' coaches I've talked to think that he was a lot better than the stats showed last year. It's just simply a mobility issue. It's also how is he going to coalesce with Smith?"

The 41-year-old threw for 3,897 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last year for the Jets, completing 63 percent of his passes while taking 40 sacks and going just 5-12 as the starter.

For most quarterbacks, that's a strong showing, but for Rodgers it was a down year and an indication that perhaps the 41-year-old's best football was well behind him. The Steelers are hoping that a change of scenery will help revitalize Rodgers—who spent much of the offseason seemingly waffling over whether he was even going to continue playing—and provide an upgrade over last season's quarterbacking duo of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, now with the New York Giants and Jets, respectively.