The AFC North received big news on Thursday, as the Pittsburgh Steelers at long last agreed to terms with quarterback Aaron Rodgers on a one-year contract. Rodgers, 41, had long been anticipated to join the Steelers in the offseason but the two sides had yet to make anything official until now.
With the Steelers set to begin their minicamp next week, Rodgers will try to hit the ground running. He will become the Steelers’ fourth consecutive new signal-caller to start for the team in Week 1. Since Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, the Steelers have trotted out Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett, and Justin Fields to begin the past three seasons.
Rodgers will add a high degree of pedigree into the division picture. The four-time MVP and former Super Bowl MVP is one of the most talented and accomplished quarterbacks in NFL history. Rodgers may be far removed from his athletic prime but is still a threat at the position given his elite accuracy, intangibles, and experience.
Last season, coming off a torn achilles injury, Rodgers threw 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions for 3,897 passing yards. His touchdowns and yardage ranked Top 10 among all quarterbacks but while he closed the season strong, his QBR (48.0) ranked 25th at the position.
With Rodgers at the helm, the New York Jets struggled on the year and underwhelmed to the tune of a 5-12 record. The Steelers will be hopeful that their superior infrastructure and coaching staff will lead to more success with Rodgers than the Jets had.
The Ravens have only faced off against Rodgers four times in total during his long tenure with the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers has a 3-1 record versus the Ravens with combined stats of seven touchdowns, four interceptions, 911 passing yards, and a 62.7% completion rate.
This coming season, the Ravens won’t face Rodgers and the Steelers until Week 14 on December 7, and then again to close out the season in Week 18.