Aaron Rodgers may have wanted more respect amid latest Steelers saga

Barring what would be an unexpected development, quarterback Aaron Rodgers will re-sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers at some point between the second Friday of May and the beginning of OTAs on May 18 to serve as the club's starting quarterback for the 2026 season. 

As of Friday morning, no agreement between the two sides had yet been inked. During a Thursday appearance on "The Herd with Colin Cowherd" program, Steelers reporter Mike DeFabo of The Athletic discussed why Rodgers has remained a free agent even though the future Hall of Famer returning to Pittsburgh has seemed like the inevitable conclusion to this story for some time. 

Steelers, Rodgers had to get past "significant obstacle?"

"They did not think the contract itself was going to be a significant obstacle," DeFabo said about the Steelers' wait for Rodgers, per Jake Brockhoff of Steelers Depot. "Rodgers, last year, he really played on a tremendous discount around $13M. And so now, he's set to make on this (unrestricted free-agent) tender around $15M. It should be more than that." 

While with the New York Jets in 2023, Rodgers took a massive pay cut to help the team out. His two-season tenure with the Jets did not go as anyone involved had hoped before he signed his team-friendly agreement with the Steelers last June. The 42-year-old then helped Pittsburgh reach the playoffs, so it's understandable that he may want more than just the $15M attached to the free-agent tender for what may be the final campaign of his playing career. 

Aaron Rodgers doesn't need money, but ...

"Sometimes it's not about the dollars themselves," DeFabo continued. "Often, the amount you get is commensurate with the amount of respect the team is giving you. And in that way, I think he at least would like to get closer to market value."

As Alex Kozora of Steelers Depot shared, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport was sure to say on multiple occasions during updates offered on Thursday that Pittsburgh and Rodgers had "no contract in place" heading into the weekend. That could change as quickly as Friday, as Steelers reporter Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted that the signal-caller never cleaned out his locker at the team's practice facility following the 2025 season.