As of Thursday afternoon, the Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t know if they’d secure the services of veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers now that his divorce from the New York Jets is finalized. However, the Steelers officially signed former Jets cornerback Brandin Echols after the new league year opened on Wednesday.
During his introductory news conference on Thursday, Echols made it known he’d love to share a locker room with Rodgers again.
“Hell yeah,” Echols said about Rodgers possibly joining him in Pittsburgh, according to Troy Montgomery of Steelers Depot. “Tell his a–, ‘come on.'”
When Echols spoke, the perception existed that Rodgers was waiting to learn if the Minnesota Vikings would give him a chance to start for a season over 2024 first-round draft pick J.J. McCarthy after McCarthy spent his entire rookie campaign recovering from a complete meniscus repair. The Vikings reportedly are ready to hand the keys to their offense over to McCarthy, but recent stories have also linked Rodgers with the New York Giants.
Rodgers already owns a home in New Jersey and may want to stay in the state.
Some reporters and analysts accused Rodgers of being a distraction and a selfish locker-room presence during his Jets tenure for the way he generated headlines via his “Pat McAfee Show” appearances and because he skipped the club’s two-day mandatory minicamp last spring to go on a pre-planned trip to Egypt. Numerous current Jets players have since defended the future Hall of Famer, and Echols indicated he thinks Rodgers would be a positive for the Steelers.
“When he first got [to the Jets in the spring of 2023],” Echols added about Rodgers, “I couldn’t really feel him out. But after a while, we kind of gravitated towards each other in practices. He started to try to attack me, but it was for the betterment of me. And I will say, having him around, it did make me a better football player.”
Echols was with the Jets from 2021 through this past season and, thus, experienced all the highs and lows of that franchise’s Rodgers era. For better or worse, it’s a ride Echols would take again if Rodgers is willing to call Pittsburgh home for a season or two.
