The real reason Steelers' Aaron Rodgers free agent deal isn't signed yet

Everyone is waiting for Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers to agree to a contract that makes him their starting quarterback for the 2025 NFL season.

But there hasn't been any final agreement yet.

That's by design, according to Yahoo's national NFL reporter Charles Robinson.

Here's how Robinson lays it out:

However, that schedule won’t include a clock or deadlines, no matter how many times the outside world tries to nail one down. That’s for the very much intended purpose of eliminating more stories about Rodgers’ existence in Pittsburgh's orbit, eliminating questions about why he is not taking part in organized team activities and even leaving the door open for him to potentially miss the June minicamp, if it ultimately comes to that. So long as Rodgers isn’t signed, there is no room for questions about why he’s signed but not in the building, or a running timeline of when he is going to show up.

That actually makes some sense, but leaves some confusion.

The Steelers are still creating plenty of stories about Rodgers by not having a deal done. But it is probably less of a bad look for the franchise if Rodgers is messing around while not under contract with them than after a deal is done.

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Pittsburgh currently has Will Howard, Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson under contract at QB.

"With that in mind, Pittsburgh moves forward with three of its four quarterbacks — Howard, Rudolph and Thompson — and one extremely large open seat for whenever Rodgers is ready to return to football," Robinson writes. "That could be prior to the full-squad minicamp or even prior to training camp in July."

Coach Mike Tomlin has said publicly that it makes sense to have any new QB in the building by training camp.

"Realistically, Rodgers sidelining himself from football all the way to late July would be a surprise, given that he knows the risks of walking into a completely new environment at the last possible moment," Robinson writes. "Not just from a chemistry standpoint with teammates, but also logically with just getting reps down in a June introduction to the rest of the team, before a break and then resumption of work when training camp kicks off."

Robinson offered his prediction on the matter, too.

"For now, smart money has Rodgers and the Steelers getting something done just before the June full-squad minicamp," Robinson writes.

There you have it. Another month still to go in this odd saga.

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