With the Pittsburgh Steelers bringing in 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers for the 2025 season, there is one clear vision for the franchise, and that’s to get over the hump in the playoffs and at least win a playoff game for the first time in nearly a decade.
For one year at least, even with Rodgers’ age, that makes some sense for the Steelers, and it certainly seems possible.
But there’s one caveat to that pairing between the Steelers and Rodgers for Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio that gets lost when it comes to the winning a playoff game discussion. During his appearance on 93.7 The Fan’s PM Show with Andrew Fillipponi and Chris Mueller, Florio pointed out that while Rodgers has a Hall of Fame resume and is one of the best to ever play the position, he doesn’t have much playoff success himself.
“So I think there’s a desperation to bring that [playoff drought] to an end, and I think that is the litmus test. That’s the pass fail. And then anything beyond that is house money. The question is though, can you beat in the postseason single elimination, the Ravens and Lamar Jackson, the Bengals and Joe Burrow, the Bills and Josh Allen, the Texans and CJ Stroud, or ultimately the Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes? We won’t know that,” Florio said of Rodgers with the Steelers, according to video via 93.7 The Fan on YouTube. “But here’s the thing to remember: it’s not like Aaron Rodgers has a ton of postseason success. He’s got one Super Bowl appearance in his career.
“They’ve had multiple one seeds that they’ve squandered in Green Bay. So we’ll see. But for now, the mission is clear: get to the playoffs and win a playoff game. That’s when it becomes a success. And then anything after that, who knows?”
Though Rodgers does have a Super Bowl to his name, having defeated the Steelers in Super Bowl XLV, 31-25, he doesn’t have much playoff success outside of that. He’s appeared in just that one Super Bowl, and has a playoff record of 12-10. Four times in his career, Rodgers has gone one-and-done in the playoffs, including his last appearance in the postseason in 2022 with the Packers, losing to the San Francisco 49ers at home, 13-10.
That day, Rodgers threw for just 229 yards and was sacked five times. In his 22 career playoff games, Rodgers has thrown for 5,894 yards and 45 touchdowns with 13 interceptions. He has also been sacked 54 times in the playoffs, but does have four rushing touchdowns to his name, too.
As the starting quarterback in Green Bay, Rodgers was also 0-4 in his last four trips to the NFC Championship Game, failing to return to the Super Bowl in those years despite the Packers having strong teams. In those four games, he lost to the Seattle Seahawks in overtime, was blown out by the Atlanta Falcons, lost a close game to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and was blown out by the San Francisco 49ers. In his last two NFC title game appearances, he threw for more than 300 yards, but it wasn’t enough.
It’s been a few years since Rodgers was in the playoffs, and it’s been four years since he won a playoff game. That’s a long time in the NFL landscape, but the Steelers are banking on him still having plenty of juice left in his tank and elevating the Steelers enough offensively to provide the team with balance and the ability to show up in the playoffs and fight for a win.
Will that be enough? That remains to be seen. The Steelers — and many analysts — seem to think so. History might suggest otherwise, though.
