Steelers teammates ecstatic to welcome QB Aaron Rodgers back to Pittsburgh

Khan added to the protection unit, too, spending a first-round pick on Arizona State tackle Max Iheanachor, giving the Steelers another option in a position group that already included ascending tackle Troy Fautanu and 2023 first-rounder Broderick Jones.

"It's awesome. I was excited and happy to see him back," Fautanu said of Rodgers' return. "Obviously, to have our leader back from last year and kind of having a year with him and kind of learning from him, we kind of picked up where we left off. It felt like he never really left with him being back in the huddle. Will (Howard), Mason (Rudolph) and Drew have done a good job the past couple of weeks just making sure we are all on the same page. But like I said, it's nice to have 'A' back."

Rodgers' inclusion signals the Steelers believe they have a roster capable of contending, provided they receive competent production from the quarterback. That's largely what Rodgers gave them in 2025, completing 65.7% of his passes for 3,322 yards and a 24-7 TD-INT ratio. While he was limited in the full scope of what he was able to accomplish at 41 years old -- there was a reason he owned the shortest time to throw (2.59 seconds, per Next Gen Stats) among all QBs with at least 200 dropbacks -- he was still able to execute consistently enough to help the Steelers win 10 games.

With Rodgers on board and plenty of faith in their defense, the Steelers will carry plenty of optimism into 2026 -- a sentiment that became evident when Rodgers resurfaced Monday.

"It's definitely awesome to have him back," linebacker Payton Wilson said. "It's a lot harder on us in 7-on-7 things. He's a great teammate and obviously the guys on the offensive side of the ball are super stoked to have him back. It's just good to have another veteran leader back in the locker room."

Edge rusher Alex Highsmith shared similar excitement while touching on Rodgers' personality: "It's awesome having him back. He's a mysterious guy. ... That's just who he is, I think. He's mysterious, but he's one heck of a teammate. ... He's a great dude."