Xtra Points: Steelers Draft Special
ALTOONA, Pa. (WTAJ) – WTAJ is debuting a brand-new show called 'Xtra Points,' which will break down sports topics both locally and nationally. On the pilot episode, Andrew Clay, Riley Holsinger and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Steelers beat reporter Brian Batko discuss the Steelers ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Watch the special in the media player above.
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Newsweek
38 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Steelers' Aaron Rodgers Has Chance at Massive NFL Milestone
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Pittsburgh Steelers have officially signed future Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers. After an offseason full of rumors and speculation, the two sides finally came together on a deal for the 2025 season. For Rodgers, it is a one-year contract. More than likely, this will be a farewell tour for one of the best quarterbacks to ever throw the football. Along with his farewell tour, Rodgers will have a shot at reaching a massive NFL milestone that few have reached. Aaron Rodgers #8 of the New York Jets reacts as he throws a pass as he warms up prior to an NFL football game between the New York Jets and the New England Patriots at... Aaron Rodgers #8 of the New York Jets reacts as he throws a pass as he warms up prior to an NFL football game between the New York Jets and the New England Patriots at MetLife Stadium on September 19, 2024 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. More Photo byShould he defeat his old team, the Green Bay Packers, in Week 8 on Sunday Night Football, Rodgers would become the fifth quarterback to ever accomplish that feat. Read more: Aaron Rodgers Could Be Trouble For Steelers' Mike Tomlin Says Former Rival To this point in NFL history, the only four to ever do it are Tom Brady, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, and Drew Brees. It would be just one more accolade to add on to his legacy. Of course, beating the Packers and his replacement in Green Bay, Jordan Love, will be no easy task. There are many questions surrounding the Steelers and Rodgers. Some don't expect the 2025 season to go as planned for the two parties. Despite those doubters, the 41-year-old quarterback is a huge upgrade for Pittsburgh. He had a good year last season, playing all 17 games in his first year back from a torn Achilles to go along with 3,897 passing yards, 28 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. Also, the Steelers have put together a talented roster around the future Hall of Fame quarterback. He has DK Metcalf as his No. 1 wide receiver, a defense capable of being elite, and young playmakers throughout the offense outside of Metcalf. Read more: Packers' Jordan Love Speaks Out After Aaron Rodgers Signs With Steelers Pittsburgh will be relying heavily on Rodgers to be the main engine for the offense. He has always made his teammates better around him throughout his career. If he can come in and play the way that he had played prior to his Achilles tear, the Steelers will have a chance at making a championship run. He won't be able to do it by himself, but his talent and leadership will be valuable. Mike Tomlin and Rodgers have the potential to be a lethal duo. Hopefully, the two sides will reach their ceiling together and power Pittsburgh back to being a legitimate Super Bowl contender. For more Pittsburgh Steelers and NFL news, head over to Newsweek Sports.
New York Times
39 minutes ago
- New York Times
Aaron Rodgers film review: What does the QB have left in the tank for the Steelers?
If you can get past the understandable Aaron Rodgers fatigue, you see the quarterback played some good ball down the stretch last season for the New York Jets. He looked more comfortable, mobile and confident than he did in the first half of his first season returning from the Achilles injury he suffered in 2023. Advertisement He threw the ball with zip, got it downfield and even scrambled for yardage. Though his game is diminished and he can't create plays outside of structure, which was a major part of his succeess over the years, Rodgers could give the Steelers the best quarterback play they've had since Ben Roethlisberger before a sharp downturn in 2021, which says something about Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback carousel. With his quick release and accuracy, Rodgers will always be an ace in the quick game. When given a clean pocket, he can still make tight-window throws downfield with the best of them. Where his game has diminished most is in his ability to make plays outside the pocket and effortlessly make difficult throws off-platform. He can still occasionally throw an off-platform dime, but his passes would end up just missing for him most of the time last season. He can't generate enough torque from his hips like in his prime. Rodgers' numbers were ugly last season, but the Jets' pass protection was terrible and the receivers dropped passes at the league's third-highest rate. Week 15, 5:35 remaining in the first quarter, first-and-10 On this play, Davante Adams and Garrett Wilson were lined up opposite each other. The Jaguars defense played Cover 1 (man-to-man with one deep safety). Rodgers looked to Adams first, which caused the free safety to bite in his direction, opening space down the seam for Wilson. Without much of a reset, Rodgers generated enough power to make a strong throw on a line to Wilson 30 yards downfield. Rodgers to Wilson! Jets TD! 📺: #NYJvsJAX on FOX📱: — NFL (@NFL) December 15, 2024 Surprisingly, after Week 8, Rodgers ranked 11th in expected points added (EPA) per scramble. He looks like he's running in quicksand, but he's still willing to run when the opportunity presents itself. Rodgers can put together one more good season if he can stay healthy, but he isn't close to the ceiling-raising player he was with the Green Bay Packers. He needs the Steelers to help him. Pittsburgh has a stacked offensive roster but enough pieces to be effective. Advertisement Fortifying the space in front of an aging quarterback is arguably more important than having a surplus of talent at receiver. The Steelers have a formidable interior. Center Zach Frazier is a legitimate star at the position. Left guard Isaac Seumalo hasn't played up to his big free-agent contract, but he's at least a plus starter at the position. And right guard, Mason McCormick had a solid rookie season and has the potential to improve. The ceiling for this offensive line will depend on the tackles. Broderick Jones, the Steelers' first-round pick in 2023, is a physically gifted player who was always seen as something of a project. He has played more on the right side of the line. This season will be the first in which he can focus on the left side, where he says he's more comfortable. Right tackle Troy Fautanu, last year's first-round pick, was injured in preseason and played only 55 snaps before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Both tackles have potential but are big questions heading into the season. Rodgers won't hold on to the ball too long, which will help the line. His 2.79-second average time to throw ranked the 36th among qualifying quarterbacks. For context, Russell Wilson ranked the 10th highest (3.03). Perhaps more important than pass protection for Rodgers at this point in his career is run blocking. The Steelers cannot ask Rodgers to pass at a high rate, not that offensive coordinator Arthur Smith would want to anyway. Last season, the Steelers finished 25th in rushing success rate and yards made before contact. With the investments the Steelers have made to their line, they must run-block better. Third-round pick Kaleb Johnson is a better fit in Smith's outside zone scheme than Najee Harris was. If the Steelers don't finish in the top 10 in rushing success rate, the Rodgers experiment will be yet another failed veteran quarterback venture. Rodgers wants to be able to throw with anticipation. He wants to stay a step ahead of the defense and adjust routes and ball locations based on what the defense is doing. The problem is finding a receiver who thinks the way he does, which is why he prefers those he's played with, like Allen Lazard or Randall Cobb. However, it's hard to always be on the same page as Rodgers. Even Adams, with whom he had arguably more chemistry than any other receiver he played with in Green Bay, struggled to get back on the same page as him in New York after spending a couple of years apart. Week 17, 14:43 remaining in the third quarter, second-and-9 Here, the Buffalo Bills showed a blitz to Rodgers' right just before the snap. Adams was lined up in the slot to Rodgers' left. However, after the snap, the Bills' defensive end and linebacker to Rodgers' right backed into coverage and blitzed the linebacker to Rodgers' left, which caused him to throw hot. However, he didn't need to throw hot against a four-man rush and the protection sliding toward the blitz. Adams didn't expect a hot throw to the side the protection slid to and didn't get his head around right away. The pass fell incomplete. Surprisingly, there were many instances when Rodgers and Adams weren't on the same page last season. His No. 1 receiver is now DK Metcalf. In addition to being one of the best deep threats in the league, his ability to win on short routes and create after the catch fits exactly what Rodgers is seeking. However, Metcalf can ad-lib sometimes and get sloppy with his route running, and he isn't always where his quarterback expects. Ask Geno Smith. If Metcalf takes his route a step or two too deep and Rodgers lets go of the ball early and throws an incomplete pass, we'll see some ugly body language from both players. Metcalf is a physical freak, but he doesn't have the natural feel for the game like Jordy Nelson or Adams. Advertisement Rodgers and Metcalf will make some spectacular plays together, but I can see them driving each other crazy on other plays. We'll see how much chemistry they can develop in their time together in Pittsburgh. The Steelers have sought a No. 2 receiver for years. They had a strong duo with George Pickens and Metcalf but decided that parting ways with Pickens, whose effort on the field was inconsistent, would be a net positive. There aren't many options to add through free agency or trade at this point. As mentioned, Rodgers needs a receiver he can trust to win in the short and intermediate parts of the field, with Metcalf lifting coverage. Tight end Pat Freiermuth should put up some strong numbers with Rodgers, but the Steelers need a more explosive option to emerge. Calvin Austin became a solid option for the Steelers last season, catching 36 passes for 548 yards. The team has high hopes for Roman Wilson, whom it picked in the third round last season. Wilson suffered a high ankle sprain, which made him a nonfactor last season, but he has reportedly been impressive in OTAs. The team can also sign Keenan Allen, who is slow at this point in his career but can still be productive underneath. He could at least give Rodgers someone he can trust to be where he needs to be. Right now, the No. 2 receiver is a huge question mark. Even when Rodgers had his career resuscitated playing in Matt LaFleur's system in Green Bay, he was complaining about how much motion was in the offense and pined for more control. After one of the worst seasons of his career, will Rodgers be humble and allow himself to become a point-and-shoot quarterback, rather than one who needs to have full control? Rodgers wants to play in a spread-out, static system in which he can read defenses and make checks at the line of scrimmage, and Smith wants to use a lot of heavy personnel, run the ball at a high rate and throw deep shots off play action. Of course, there will be collaboration and give-and-take from Smith and Rodgers, but if the Steelers can't find a dependable No. 2 receiver, then expect to see them use a lot of multiple tight end sets again — second in 13 personnel (three tight ends usage last season) — which would limit what they do in the passing game. Also, Smith wants to attack the middle of the field on play action. Rodgers was never a middle-of-the-field merchant, but he should be more willing to do so than Wilson, who's been allergic to it his entire career. At this point in his career, Rodgers should know that relying on a strong running game is his best bet to survive an entire season and produce, but we'll see if he can check his ego. There is a narrow pathway for Rodgers to put together a top-10 season in which we see the glimpse of the old Rodgers before he rides off into the sunset, but that would require the Steelers' offensive line to play like a top-10 unit, Rodgers to stay healthy for the entire season, the chemistry between Metcalf and Rodgers to hit the ground running and a legitimate breakout from one of their young receivers. That's a lot that needs to happen at the same time. A more likely optimistic scenario is if the Steelers can be a borderline top-10 rushing attack, allowing them to scheme up throws for Rodgers and finish as a top-15 offense. That would be enough to win if their expensive defense can hold up. There's also potential for the whole thing to blow up like it did in New York, but coach Mike Tomlin has a knack for avoiding disaster. The bottom line is Rodgers is the best quarterback Tomlin has had in years. Their ceiling is higher now, but will it be enough for them to win at least one playoff game in the AFC? Unlikely. (Illustration: Dan Goldfarb / The Athletic; Mike Stobe, Emilee Chinn / Getty Image)
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Pittsburgh Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers Can Make NFL History with Week 8 Win
Pittsburgh Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers Can Make NFL History with Week 8 Win originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The NFL scheduling Gods smiled on us and we didn't even know it. When the 2025 NFL schedule came out, we all noticed the Week 1 matchup with the New York Jets. Advertisement That, of course, will pit Aaron Rodgers and Justin Fields against their old teams. We call that revenge week for each quarterback. But that's not the most interesting matchup on the calendar next year. That will come in Week 8 when Rodgers faces his old team, the Green Bay Packers at Acrisure Stadium, on Sunday Night Football. With a win, Rodgers will become just the fifth quarterback ever to beat all 32 teams. He'll join Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees. That's pretty good company, but we already know Rodgers' resume. The achievement will ultimately be just a footnote on his Hall of Fame resume. Advertisement In what could be his last season under center, he'll have the unique opportunity to beat both his former teams. And while we have no idea how the Pittsburgh 2025 season will go, those might be two of the biggest highlight games for the Steelers. Some pundits have the Steelers poised for a Super Bowl run in 2025. To others, it could mean more of the same. Another disappointing end to the postseason, or worse, no playoff appearance at all. Inside the NFL's Mina Kimes believes even with the addition of Rodgers, there are still questions on offense, namely, the rushing attack. 'None of this will work, even if Rogers does buy in, which I'm skeptical of. None of it will work, regardless of what the offense looks like, if they can't run the football better than they did last year. And that's something that they've invested in,' Kimes said. Advertisement Rodgers, who turns 42 in December, led the Jets to a 5-12 mark in his only full season in New York. Don't forget (Jets fans won't) that he missed all but four plays of the 2023 campaign after rupturing his Achilles on the first drive of the first game after joining the team two offseasons ago. Last season should be one to forget for Rodgers. He finished below the league average in passer rating - a stat of which he's the all-time career leader, and 31st in the league in QBR - behind names like Aidan O'Connell and Kirk Cousins. What version of Rodgers will the Steelers get? Related: Steelers' Ceiling Questioned ... Even After Signing Aaron Rodgers Related: Steelers Believe Aaron Rodgers' 'Best Field Vision' Can Fix Offense This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 9, 2025, where it first appeared.
