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While he is not recruiting Aaron Rodgers, Cameron Heyward is definitely open to the four-time league MVP coming to Pittsburgh after recent comments made by the longtime Steelers captain suggested otherwise.
On Wednesday, Heyward clarified what he recently said on his podcast when asked what lengths he would go to to get Rodgers to join his team. Heyward said he won't go too far to recruit Rodgers, but is indeed on board with the veteran becoming his teammate as the Steelers continue to try to find stability at the most important position in all of sports.
"It was misconstrued," Heyward said during an appearance on NFL Network, via ESPN. "I was asked a question, 'Would you go to the lengths of going to a darkness retreat to recruit Aaron Rodgers.' I said, 'I'm not doing that. The pitch is, if you want to be a Steeler, be a Steeler.' That's all it was. It wasn't that I don't like Aaron Rodgers or I'm against it.
"When I look at our team right now, it would be really cool to have a guy like Aaron Rodgers. But I can't be the guy who gets it over the finish line. He's got to make those decisions for himself. I'm excited to see what happens."
Heyward's approach is in stark contract to his handling of Russell Wilson last offseason. Heyward was among Pittsburgh's veteran players who reached out to Wilson about joining the Steelers despite the fact that the team already had a starting quarterback in place in Kenny Pickett. Pickett, who went 12-4 in his last 16 starts in Pittsburgh that saw him play the majority of the game, was granted his request to be traded after Wilson was signed.
Wilson's time in Pittsburgh started off well, but five straight losses to close out the 2024 season compelled the Steelers to go in a different direction at quarterback once again this offseason. Wilson recently signed a one-year deal with the Giants, while the Steelers are continuing to build their quarterback room after Justin Fields chose to sign with the Jets instead of re-signing with Pittsburgh. The Steelers did re-sign Mason Rudolph (who spent the 2024 season in Tennessee) as a contingency plan.
It's certainly possible that part of Heyward's approach this time around has something to do with how last year played out. More than that, it's clear that Heyward feels that he shouldn't have to convince someone to come play for one of the most stable sports organizations. The Steelers haven't had a losing season since 2003 and are the NFL's winningest franchise since the 1970 merger.
For all of their success, the Steelers haven't won a playoff game since 2016, a drought they desperate want to end in 2025. They're hoping that Rodgers can help them end that drought. For Heyward, Rodgers represents an opportunity to possibly get to a Super Bowl, something that has eluded Pittsburgh's seven-time Pro Bowler to this point in his career.
