The Pittsburgh Steelers are losing patience with Aaron Rodgers, which might result in them choosing to trade for another veteran quarterback to lead them in 2025. For months, their front office continued to wait for Rodgers. Instead of commitment, the future Hall of Famer offered nothing stronger than faint insinuations. While a patient organization prides itself on due diligence, Pittsburgh could look elsewhere.
Steelers Lose Patience with Aaron Rodgers, Trade for Kirk Cousins
As the team looks at the rest of the AFC North, they see a logjam at the top of the division. Only the Cleveland Browns prevent Pittsburgh from inhabiting last place. Yet, the team finds a way to win ball games. Granted, none of those occur in the postseason. According to ESPN writer Ben Solak, the team trades for Kirk Cousins to reverse that misfortune. Solak makes the case for the Steelers being a good fit, stating:
“The Steelers’ quarterback room is about as thin as one could get ahead of training camp. And if signing Aaron Rodgers falls through, the Steelers must trade for a veteran who can start. Mason Rudolph is currently No. 1 on the depth chart. Cousins is a good fit for coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense, which doesn’t need its quarterback to move much out of the pocket.”
“This late of a draft pick is close to Cousins’ value, and I’d imagine the Falcons are still willing to swallow $20 million—maybe even more—of his salary to get this deal done.”
Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, as Solak declares, loves the classic dropback passer. No one will ever confuse Cousins for elusive, by any stretch of the imagination. At the same time, he does scan through his progressions well and throws a catchable ball that turns into yards after the catch. If the Steelers’ run game, which ranked 25th in rushing yard average, improves, that opens the door for the play-action.
Every Kirk Cousins throw of 20+ air yards from a clean pocket in 2024: pic.twitter.com/UldQpBbQ0H
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) May 14, 2025
With D.K. Metcalf and Calvin Austin III sharing the ability to win vertically, deep passes would make Cousins even more effective. Furthermore, operating with 11 personnel will mean more targets for tight end Pat Freiermuth.
Despite the quarterback problem that plagues the team, the 26-year-old boasts three seasons with at least 60 catches. If you add that the tight end catches 72.8% of his targets, Cousins’ throwing down the seam becomes a real possibility.
Cousins is four years younger and will not make the public waves that the camera-loving Rodgers could. The Steelers prefer their quarterbacks to lead and not catalyze media firestorms. Plus, for the proposed price of a late-round pick, the team, the Steelers, effectively solves their immediate quarterback situation.
If Atlanta does spend $19 million, the veteran could play another couple of seasons while the team drafts and develops a replacement. Or rookie Will Howard can learn the ropes in the background, with the team contending during the process.