Bengals and two of their rivals may finally witness the inevitable AFC North quarterback addition very soon

The last domino to fall in this year's quarterback carousel appears to be Aaron Rodgers, and his likely destination will have an impact on the Cincinnati Bengals.

Rodgers, now 41 years old and entering his 21st season in the NFL, has been heavily linked to the Pittsburgh Steelers since being released by the New York Jets. Pittsburgh has hardly addressed the QB position after allowing Russell Wilson and Justin Fields to join the New York Giants and New York Jets, respectively. Their top two on the depth chart are Mason Rudolph, whom was brought back by his original team, and Will Howard, whom was drafted in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. 

That's an ideal QB room for Cincinnati to face twice a year, but Rodgers coming to make it his own still seems apparent. 

Latest Aaron Rodgers updates comes from his own biographer 

Ian O'Connor, Rodgers' biographer, appeared on 93.7 The Fan and predicted Rodgers will be ready to sign and join the Bengals' rival team by the end of this month.  

I just think verbally, behind the scenes, not that he guaranteed it, but he’s told [the Steelers], ‘Listen, I’m gonna play for you. I just don’t want to go there and then miss part of mandatory minicamp because of my personal issues. I’m pretty sure they’re gonna be solved by the end of May, at least in my satisfaction where I can give you my all.’ So that’s where I think he is. - Ian O’Connor

For all its legitimacy as a competitive division, the AFC North has just two teams with known Week 1 starting QBs. The Bengals have one in Joe Burrow, and the Baltimore Ravens have the other in Lamar Jackson. Pittsburgh is clearly waiting on Rodgers, and the Cleveland Browns have four options in the mix including 2025 draft picks Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders.

Rodgers signing with the Steelers in May or August won't impact Cincinnati or its non-Pittsburgh rivals very much at all, but it will provide clarity on which QB is likely to face the Bengals in Week 7 and Week 11 of the upcoming regular season.

It's been an odd waiting game for the entire NFL as Rodgers takes his time to land on Pittsburgh. Baltimore, Cincinnati, and Cleveland will all take notice when it finally happens, and return to business as usual as the offseason roars on.