With the Pittsburgh Steelers still without a starting quarterback in place for 2025, the first domino of the 2025 quarterback carousel dropped on Friday, and it turned out not to be a move, at all.
The Los Angeles Rams have agreed to a restructured contract with Matthew Stafford to keep him in L.A. for at least the 2025 season. The terms of the contract have not been released.
Despite a wild series of trade rumors, the involvement of Las Vegas Raiders co-owner Tom Brady in attempting to recruit Stafford — potentially illegally, depending on who you believe — it all turned out to be a very public contract negotiation.
The Steelers were among the teams that checked in on the potential of a trade for Stafford, but were never seen as a legitimate contender. According to Benjamin Albright of KOA Colorado , the Steelers and Cleveland Browns called, but Stafford was not interested in this destinations.
New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers during a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 20, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
The New York Giants and Raiders were among the aggressors in the Stafford market. With him off the board, the Giants have immediately pivoted to New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers , who has been informed he will be released and has been given permission to contact other teams.
According to a report by Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports , Rodgers has reciprocated that interest, making multiple calls to the Giants to gauge interest. The Giants are also considering Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson and Minnesota 's Sam Darnold , per Michael Silver of The Athletic .
Rodgers is the top name on the free agent market, but there have not been many reports linking him to Pittsburgh. The Steelers will likely move toward re-signing one of their internal options, but they will have competition for both.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Justin Fields at practice on Dec. 4, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
The Raiders have also been linked to Wilson, due to Las Vegas being coached by Pete Carroll, who was Wilson's head coach with the Seattle Seahawks for most of his career. According to a report by Adam Schefter of ESPN, the Raiders are also considering Justin Fields .
The Jets have also previously been linked to Fields.
Wilson has said he is focused on returning to the Steelers first and foremost, while Fields has not spoken publicly since the end of the season.
Steelers general manager Omar Khan said on Tuesday that his belief is that both players want to be back in Pittsburgh and his goal is to have one of them signed before the start of the new league year.
More must-reads:
