Jim Nantz Gets Honest About Steelers

The NFL’s schedule release is an event entirely for the fans, but players are obviously tuned in, too. Between bye weeks and prime-time games, there are plans to be made. That extends to commentators as well.

Those of us at home on Sundays have the privilege of changing the channel or tuning into the Red Zone Channel to avoid a bleak game or unfavorable slate. A brave few might find a nice fall activity to fill the afternoon, like going to the pumpkin patch.

The poor souls in the broadcast booth don’t have that opportunity, giving them a vested interest in the schedule release.

Among them is Jim Nantz, CBS’s top play-by-play commentator. With CBS getting the bulk of AFC games, he’s bound to get a handful of Pittsburgh Steelers games on his docket.

Subsequently, Nantz had a request for the Steelers after the schedule release.

"We have a heavy Pittsburgh influence on our schedule," Nantz said on NFL Network Wednesday (h/t CBS Sports). "There's a lot there to like about the Steelers, especially if they're good. ... [So] I don't know if you're watching, Aaron Rodgers. I hope you are. But I want you to know ... [that] just a few of my colleagues and some friends, we wanna see you in the Steel City this season.”

Some have taken issue with Nantz’s quip, but the announcer was having fun with a situation almost everyone agrees on.

There’s a real chance veteran Mason Rudolph starts for Pittsburgh in 2025, and with that comes the possibility of him finding real success. But nobody wants to go down that path, and for good reason. The Steelers are a better team with Rodgers on the roster. They’re a more entertaining team with Rodgers under center, too.

The 41-year-old passer might continue Pittsburgh’s trudge through quarterback purgatory. Still, there is upside in the unknown. If there’s an option that has even a slim chance of helping the Steelers look like an AFC contender, it’s Rodgers.

"We need the Steelers to be good," Nantz said. "They need you. I saw you play last year. ... I know you can still play. You get doubled-up with Mike Tomlin and T.J. Watt on that defense. I think it'd be a great thing. Let's get this thing done. I'm just making a personal appeal: We want you, we need you, and we look forward to seeing you."

Nantz joked that his CBS colleagues would be willing to pay Rodgers seven figures to finalize the deal.

In a conference with five titans at quarterback and several budding stars, Pittsburgh is inherently one of the lesser options to watch in the AFC. Rodgers, if nothing else, gives the Steelers some storylines to speculate about.