I mean, has anyone not thought about this in the first place?

Aaron Rodgers just confirmed that the 2025 NFL season will be his last – hinting at the retirement tour that has been long looming for one of the best quarterbacks to ever play in the game. With the Pittsburgh Steelers, it seems that Rodgers is headed straight for one last ride – like Cinderella until the clock strikes at midnight. Now it seems that there is more pressure on the team to win it all.

After all, what could be bad about one more Super Bowl win to add to his collection now more than ever?

Perhaps that was the biggest reason why the former New York Jets star opted just to sign a one-year deal, and not two-year trial runs where he also has a team or player option attached to it. Instead, it was clear right from the start – Rodgers wants to finish his career with the Steelers, and that seems to be the big picture moving forward as Pittsburgh seek to push for a majestic finish for him.

The Last Dance

Rodgers inked a one-year, $13.6 million deal with the Steelers earlier this month, and it was definitely clear that the QB would want a change of scenery after New York evidently didn’t work out in any way. The final season was quite unexpected. He did take his time in choosing a team to play for – and even mulled whether or not he would extend his career as well.

"That's why we just did a one-year deal - Steelers didn't need to put any extra years on that or anything," Rodgers said. "This was really about finishing with a lot of love and fun and peace for the career that I've had. I mean, I've played freaking 20 years, you know? It's been a long run, and I've enjoyed it. What better to place to finish than in one of the cornerstone franchises of the NFL with Mike Tomlin and a great group of leadership and great guys and a city that expects you to win."

The four-time MVP, Super Bowl champion, and definitely a future Hall of Famer ended up choosing to go for one more season with a club that has a lot of championship aspirations to live up to.

Rodgers did, however, make it clear that this is not any swing at a possible sports narrative, but rather one last try to play the game he loves the most, and that’s the angle he’s going at despite what the news says.

A Historic Season Loading

Rodgers is entering the final season of his career with 62,952 career passing yards – good for seventh in the all-time list. At this point, he is set up for bigger records, barring injury. He is expected to surpass Philip Rivers (63,440 yards) and another legendary Steeler, Ben Roethlisberger (64,088 yards), and could surpass Brett Favre (508 passing touchdowns) and Peyton Manning (539 passing touchdowns) in his final season.

"But while I'm in it, and for this year, I'm going to give the Steelers everything that I got and empty the tank and be super comfortable and satisfied with whatever happens,” said Rodgers. “Obviously, we dream about playing at the highest level in the biggest games."

He may not say it, but Rodgers is obviously looking forward to finish this season with a bang and ride off into the sunset with a chance to win in the biggest stage of the game.