The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a busy offseason. The most significant moves involved the Steelers, who traded for DK Metcalf, traded away George Pickens, and then signed Aaron Rodgers. Metcalf was early in March of the offseason. However, more speculation existed about a potential connection between trading away Pickens and signing Rodgers.

The speculation started because rumors started swirling about Rodgers joining the Steelers in March, but nothing was official until June 7, 2025. Pickens was traded to the Dallas Cowboys on May 7, 2025. On the surface, it reads like Rodgers would not sign unless Pickens were traded, but Pittsburgh Steelers beat writer for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Gerry Dulac, set the record straight. Dulac said that both happened separately and independently of each other.

“They always believed [Rodgers] would sign,” Dulac told one reader in a Thursday chat for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “But I don't think one had anything to do with the other.”

The 41-year-old quarterback is in the twilight of his career, and while both decisions did not hinge on each other, it makes sense that the Steelers may have decided to pull the trigger on the move due to Pickens's maturity issues. If Rodgers was going to join that environment, it would only be combustible, and there was a massive risk.

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The issues surrounding Pickens go way deeper than assuming he would not mix with Rodgers. He was in the final year of his expiring contract, and it became clear that the Steelers did not intend to extend him. Pittsburgh also realized that his antics were not worth it in the long run.

Since joining the league in 2022, Pickens has faced massive fines for his off-field and on-field antics, accumulating over six figures. This even prompted Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin to go public with the issue when talking to the media last season, saying, “He's got a target on his back because he's George; he understands that. But he's got to grow up. He's got to grow up in a hurry.”

The Pittsburgh Steelers traded Pickens and a 2027 sixth-round pick to the Dallas Cowboys for a 2026 third-round pick and a 2027 fifth-round pick.

Even though Rodgers had no part in the trade, the move makes a lot of sense for both sides. The Steelers get an expiring contract off the books and revitalize their locker room. In contrast, the Dallas Cowboys get much-needed talent for their receiving corps because the cupboard was bare outside CeeDee Lamb.