Aaron Rodgers will likely retire, because he’s afraid

It’s been a while since we heard anything about Aaron Rodger’s future, and for good reason — because he’s waiting for a job that doesn’t exist. For the better part of two months Rodgers has been linked to the Pittsburgh Steelers, with the team essentially leaving the door open for him to join them whenever he wants, but the quarterback has been procrastinating. Now we know why.

Aditi Kinkhabwala is plugged in to the workings of the Steelers, so this is the absolutely closest to the truth we’re going to get. On one hand you could look at this and say “that makes sense,” but think about it for just a little longer and this is the most cowardly way to end a career.

What precisely does Rodgers want to come along? Is he looking for the Chiefs or Eagles to come calling? Is he hoping the Bills will magically drop Josh Allen to bring him in? The Steelers are literally the closest thing to a Super Bowl contender who would sign him — and he’s not sold on the idea.

This was a Steelers team that went 10-7 a year ago with Russell Wilson and Justin Fields under center. They remain one of the best-coached teams in the NFL, with a defense that ranked in the Top 10 in points allowed a year ago, and they just added D.K. Metcalf to give the offense a boost. This team went to the playoffs in back-to-back years with bad QBs, and are realistically just a good passer away from legitimately contending for the Super Bowl.

Rodgers justification makes no sense. The truth is: He’s afraid. If Rodgers is saying the Steelers aren’t contenders, then he’s actually saying they can’t be contenders with him. An admission that he’s no better at this point than Russell Wilson, Kenny Pickett, or Mason Rudolph — that he can’t be the difference maker the team needs. Wanting an easier job than that is both hilarious, and impossible to find — and he knows that.

This is a man who is a master of misdirection. His entire career has been predicated on the notion that Rodgers has been hard done by. The Packers didn’t give him the support he needed, the Jets didn’t know how to build a team, now the Steelers aren’t contenders. The common thread in the middle is Rodgers, an individually brilliant statistical quarterback who simply hasn’t proven he can win when it matters. It’s been 15 years since his only Super Bowl ring, and during that time he’s routinely been mentioned as one of the NFL’s top quarterbacks, despite not having the playoff success to prove it.

Deep down Rodgers knows this. He knows that he can’t be a difference maker, especially at this age. Matthew Stafford helmed a Rams team that went 10-6 the previous season and won a Super Bowl. Tom Brady was able to take over a 7-9 Buccaneers team and hoist the Lombardi Trophy. Rodgers isn’t either of those guys. He’s simply lacking the confidence or ability to get the job done.

So now he pivots. He’ll shift blame and say it’s because the Steelers aren’t good enough. He’ll move to podcasting and say he could have won a Super Bowl is the right team called. It’s another step in a well-trodden path of Rodgers blaming everyone but himself.

The silver lining for the Steelers: You don’t have to deal with Aaron Rodgers. If he doesn’t believe he can get the job done then he’s a broken player y’all don’t need. Find someone hungry in the draft. Someone confident. Someone who isn’t Aaron Rodgers.