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It looks like the Pittsburgh Steelers won’t be doing anything with George Pickens, but they enhanced their defense with a safety signing. And here is the Steelers’ biggest need to address after the first week of 2025 NFL free agency.
A rocket scientist isn’t need to understand what the Steelers have left to do in free agency. A quick glance at their depth chart shows Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson atop the quarterback position. And this is otherwise a playoff-worthy roster.
The Steelers must solve their quarterback issue, or they will head into the NFL Draft looking for a quarterback in a year where that position isn’t strong or deep.
Steelers may not get QB Aaron Rodgers
First, why would they want him? He’s way past his prime, and his attitude has been suspect for much of the waning years of his career.
Could Rodgers lift the Steelers into Super Bowl contention? It seems unlikely. He will turn 42 before the season ends.
Also, there’s the laughable direction suggested by Mike Florio of nbcsports.com.
“Flacco is now 40, but he can still throw it,” Florio wrote. “And since he was never a mobile quarterback, the aging of the legs (which always go before the arm) has been a non-issue. He has shown that he loves football. He fully intends to take a job this season, somewhere. And he likely won’t be expensive; he made $4.5 million last year.
“So while Rodgers stares into the ocean to carefully contemplate his options (at a time when dozens of players are making snap decisions) and while (Russell) Wilson tries to convince the likes of the Browns and Giants that his repertoire consists of more than moonball left and moonball right, Flacco is content to wait.”
It’s not that the Steelers won’t sign Flacco, it’s that they shouldn’t. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of difference in winning games between Rudolph and Flacco. So they should draft a young guy and let Rudolph play until the young gun runs him off.
Another option for the Steelers is trading for a quarterback. And there are two prime options in consideration with the Lions’ Hendon Hooker and the Saints Joe Milton III.
Milton may be the best option because his ceiling appears to be higher. In his NFL debut the 25-year-old Milton went 22-for-29 with 249 yards and a touchdown. Also, he ran 16 yards for a score.
Word on the NFL street is the Patriots seek a third-round pick for Milton. That may sound steep for a guy they drafted in the sixth round. However, the alternative is spending an even higher draft pick to get another unproven guy like Shedeur Sanders or Jaxson Dart.
Yet another option would be Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins. He seems to still have a little something left in the tank. But the Falcons decided to keep Cousins on their roster, triggering a $10 million roster bonus he would be owed for the 2026 season. However, that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t still trade the 36-year-old veteran.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler weighed in on the situation recently on SportsCenter via bleacher report.
“I continue to hear that the Falcons are not overly motivated to move Kirk Cousins right now,” Fowler said. “They're willing to be patient. As one team source told me, ‘What's the rush? We've already locked into $37.5 million in additional guarantees for 2025 moving forward.' And so, they're going to kind of feel this out.
“It might be two months, it might be two weeks, it might be six months, they haven't made that sort of firm determination as far as how long it'll be in a Falcons uniform. But the sense I get from teams is that it simply would just take a big financial package, because they need a lot of money to try to offset that $37 million. They need somebody to step in.”
One thing for sure, the Steelers don’t come as playoff contenders with guys like Milton, Hooker, Sanders, or Dart.
What may be most at risk is Tomlin’s impressive run of never having a sub-.500 season as head coach. But he said he acknowledges the difficulties of where the organization has been over recent seasons, according to foxsports.com.
“I understand the frustrations,” he said. “And to be quite honest, I share it.
“I’m open to adaptation and change and have been. And so it’s not a new discussion. It’s not like I’ve been doing the same things over (and over). As uncomfortable as it is, (there) better be growth in it for us individually and collectively in an effort to make sure 2025 doesn’t end in a similar way (as the 2024 season did).”
Tomlin said he doesn’t worry about his job security, according to a post on X by Brian Batko.
Mike Tomlin says “words are hollow” when it comes to questions about his job security. Here's more of his answer on that.
“I don't make excuses for failure,” he said. “I own it. But I also feel like I'm capable. As long as I'm afforded an opportunity to do that, I'll continue. But I certainly understand their frustrations. Probably more important than that, I share it.”
The Steelers finished the 2024 season on a four-game losing streak. They still made the playoffs, but didn't really show up in a 28-14 beatdown at the hands of the Ravens. It certainly won't go down as Tomlin's finest moment.
But T.J. Watt is still around. And the addition of D.K. Metcalf adds to the potential of an offense that could hum if the right quarterback lines up behind center.
