Aaron Rodgers Signing Could Have Significant Impact on Former Cowboy

One of Oklahoma State’s former stars might have lost his starting spot.

On Thursday, the Pittsburgh Steelers agreed to a deal with former NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. The former Packers star heading to Pittsburgh almost certainly means that he will take the starting job, leaving Mason Rudolph in the backup role once again.

Rudolph has had an up-and-down career in the NFL. After getting some limited opportunities with the Steelers throughout his first few seasons, Rudolph chose to move on in 2024 and played last season with the Tennessee Titans, earning some starts on one of the worst teams in the league.

Going into 2025, the Steelers had a rough quarterback situation with no clear starter. So, they went out and signed Rudolph in free agency, bringing the former Cowboy back to Pittsburgh with a decent chance that he would enter next season as the starter.

Of course, with Rodgers in the fold, he will almost certainly be taking over the reigns under center. While the star status of Rodgers will carry him to the starting spot at the beginning of the season, all hope isn’t lost for Rudolph if he wants to earn that starting job back.

In Rodgers’ time with the New York Jets, he was often dealing with injuries and never looked like the star quarterback he was in Green Bay. Considering his days of being a star in the NFL are clearly behind him, Rudolph could be a shiny, younger option to replace him if things go poorly early in the season, as they often have for Rodgers’ teams in recent years.

While Rudolph hasn’t evolved much since his time in Stillwater, he has gained some important experience. His overall game and struggles with turnovers are still almost identical, but he has settled into the NFL game and could be a somewhat reliable option if Pittsburgh is desperate enough.

Only time will tell if the Steelers go to the former OSU star, but his chances of making a start on opening week are incredibly slim.