PITTSBURGH — The Steelers believe Aaron Rodgers could return for another season, and the process won’t be as prolonged or cloaked in a cloud of mystery as it was last year.

New coach Mike McCarthy is quietly doubling down on his stated desire to be reunited with the quarterback who helped him win five division titles and a Super Bowl in 13 seasons in Green Bay, according to team sources.

And the possibility of Rodgers coming back for his 22nd NFL season, at age 42, is based on a simple narrative: He really enjoyed his time with the Steelers, especially after two moribund seasons with the New York Jets.

Even though Rodgers said he signed with the Steelers because of Mike Tomlin, the resignation of the 19-year coach has apparently not dissuaded him from potentially playing again in 2026.

Here’s why:

Rodgers really enjoyed his teammates and was open and emphatic about letting them get to know him, beginning as far back as training camp. In turn, they responded to the former four-time league MVP and produced a passing offense that averaged more yards and touchdowns than the previous season.

But he especially loved winning a division title and getting back to the postseason again, even though the Steelers were ousted in the wild-card round by the Houston Texans.

That’s why the Steelers don’t think they will have to wait to June, as they did last year, to get a decision from Rodgers.

They believe a lot of Rodgers’ uncertainty about playing in 2025 was because he was coming off two losing and disappointing seasons with the Jets. Rodgers missed all but five snaps of his first season in New York and won only five games his second season.

Who could blame him for spending months contemplating retirement?

However, the Steelers think Rodgers is approaching this offseason with a renewed perspective after what happened last season.

As long as he physically feels capable of another season — Rodgers missed only one game in 2025 because of a fractured wrist — they believe the doubts that may have existed last year during the offseason are not nearly as prevalent this year.

The same is true of the Steelers’ doubts about Rodgers. He did not show any signs of a late-season decline, not after his two December performances against the Baltimore Ravens and a road victory in Detroit.

All that being said, the Steelers are not going to wait to June for Rodgers to make a decision, not like they did last season. Ideally, they would like to know by the start of free agency (March 11) what he intends to do, certainly before the start of the April 23 draft.

Even if he does return for one more season, it will not alter whatever intention the Steelers have about taking a quarterback early in the draft.

They could still draft a quarterback, even in the first round, and have him wait his turn as part of a one-year succession plan behind Rodgers.

McCarthy said at his introductory press conference how much he likes the potential of Will Howard, last year’s sixth-round pick. But after a season of inactivity, the Steelers are not going to pin their hopes on a quarterback who has never appeared in any NFL game, preseason or otherwise.

McCarthy wants Rodgers to return, and the signs are more likely than not he will be back — even more so than last year at this time.

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