Aaron Rodgers doesn’t look like a quarterback in decline right now. He looks like a quarterback who has found a new gear in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers as a whole aren’t exactly ripping through the season, but Rodgers has given them something worth watching. His numbers in 2026 are starting to look like the best version of his post-Packers career, and the clearest evidence comes through in a few simple stats.
The first number is 17. Rodgers has completed 17 passes of more than 20 yards this season, and that puts him in some elite company. It’s tied for fifth-best in the league, matching Jared Goff and Bryce Young and sitting ahead of Drake Maye, Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes.
Not all of those chunk plays have been downfield lasers. Jaylen Warren turned a screen into an 80-yard touchdown in Week 5, and that counts too. But Rodgers has also connected on real deep shots, including a pair of passes that traveled 20 or more air yards in Pittsburgh’s Week 3 loss to the Bengals.
Then there’s 246.8. That’s Rodgers’ passing yards per game, and it’s a number that tells you he’s been more aggressive than he was in his first season with Pittsburgh.
He’s just outside the top 10 in that category and is actually outpacing Josh Allen there. More important for Rodgers specifically, it’s easily the best yards-per-game mark he’s posted since leaving Green Bay.
The third number is 3, and it speaks to where Rodgers has been most dangerous lately. He has put together three straight games with three touchdown passes, a run ESPN’s Field Yates pointed out he hadn’t matched since Dec. 2021, the year that ended with Rodgers winning MVP.
For a 42-year-old quarterback whose game has clearly changed, that’s no small thing. The arm strength may not be what it once was, but the recent results say Rodgers is still moving Pittsburgh down the field and finishing drives.
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With the Buccaneers up next, the front office is at least being pushed to consider outside help, and the market offers a few familiar names who could plausibly be available. Jauan Jennings, Calvin Ridley, Jerry Jeudy and Brian Thomas all sit in the mix as speculative targets, a reminder that Pittsburgh may need to weigh both the urgency of the moment and the cost of fixing a position group that has suddenly become thin. [Read more 🡒]
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Pittsburgh is now trying to settle in under Mike McCarthy, who has guided the club to a 3-2 start heading into Week 6. The Steelers are still sorting through the early stages of a new coaching era, and Tomlins presence in the media only adds another layer to how the team is being watched from the outside. Even in a different job, he remains tied to the franchise in a way that feels hard to shake. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Trade Deadline Search Puts One Roster Need In The Spotlight
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The fit, though, is far from simple. Some of the names come with obvious hurdles, whether it is the challenge of prying a player loose from another roster or the uncertainty around how realistic any deal actually is, and the Steelers also have to weigh how much they want to chase help at a spot that has become such an obvious need. As the deadline gets closer, Pittsburgh appears to be testing the market while knowing the most intriguing options may be the hardest ones to land. [Read more 🡒]