Steelers Sign Aaron Rodgers' Former Tight End

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is set to reunite with a former favorite target of his.

According to ESPN's Brooke Pryor, the Steelers are signing tight end Robert Tonyan to a one-year deal.

Reunion in Pittsburgh: Steelers agreed to a one-year deal with TE Robert Tonyan, per source.

The one-time Green Bay tight end, who was at minicamp for a tryout, caught 11 TDs from Aaron Rodgers in 2020.
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) June 4, 2026

Tonyan tried out for Pittsburgh during rookie minicamp, and he did enough to earn a shot to crack the 53-man roster in 2026.

The 32-year-old is entering the ninth year of his NFL career, a majority of which were spent alongside Rodgers with the Green Bay Packers.

An undrafted free agent out of Indiana State in 2017, Tonyan signed to the Packers' practice squad late that season and later made his debut in 2018.

He posted 177 yards and two touchdowns on 14 catches over 27 games between the 2018 and 2019 campaigns before breaking out in 2019.

That season, Tonyan hauled in 52 passes from Rodgers for 586 yards and 11 touchdowns.

He took a step back in 2021, suiting up for just eight contests due to a torn ACL. Tonyan returned with a bang in 2022 though, logging 470 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 53 receptions over 17 games.

He's since bounced around with the Chicago Bears (2023), Minnesota Vikings (2024) and Kansas City Chiefs (2024-2025), posting 113 yards on 12 receptions in 39 games during that span.

Oct 17, 2021; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) celebrates scoring a touchdown with tight end Robert Tonyan (85) during the second half against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-Imagn Images | Dennis Wierzbicki-Imagn Images

Does Tonyan Have a Real Shot of Making Steelers' Roster?

We all know Rodgers loves having his own guys around. That was on display when Pittsburgh brought Marquez Valdes-Scantling in last season, and Tonyan scratches that same itch.

The pair developed quite the rapport during their five-plus-year stint in Green Bay together, and it also helps Tonyan's case that he played, albeit briefly in 2018, in head coach Mike McCarthy's offense.

The Steelers potentially have room for one more tight end on their roster next to Pat Freiermuth, the newly-extended Darnell Washington and rookie fifth-round pick Riley Nowakowski, who's more of a fullback/H-back.

Pittsburgh has three good athletes at the position further down on the depth chart in Jaheim Bell, JJ Galbreath and UDFA Lake McRee, all of whom could theoretically make an impact as weapons in the passing game, but none of them are particularly strong blockers.

Tonyan fits into a similar mold, though his vast experience in the league and with Rodgers could end up working to his advantage. It also doesn't hurt that he's played 743 special teams snaps during his career, including 108 with the Chiefs in 2025.

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