With Mike McCarthy now at the helm, it seems it would make perfect sense for a Pittsburgh Steelers reunion with Aaron Rodgers next season. Fox Sports' Colin Cowherd doesn't think so, however.
On his radio show on Friday, Cowherd argued the case for the Steelers pursuing Green Bay Packers backup signal-caller Malik Willis in free agency.
"I would go get Malik Willis ," Cowherd said . "McCarthy has a connection to Green Bay . He's gonna have intel. Also, the Steelers need to get younger and more athletic. There are people in the building — and people out of the building — that are saying he's better than Jordan Love . I don't think so, but he is electric, he played very well in Green Bay. McCarthy has a history of getting the best out of quarterbacks, despite the criticism he gets."
Spotrac's calculated market value tabs Willis as having a $35.5 million average annual salary. While that would be considerably more than what Rodgers would cost, the 26-year-old passer has boosted his stock while holding Love's clipboard. The Tennessee Titans drafted Willis in the third round (No. 86 overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft, 66 picks after the Steelers took Kenny Pickett .
Liberty Football hosts the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns at Williams Stadium on November 20, 2021. (Photo by Andrew Snyder)
The Liberty product started three games for the Titans before being shipped off in favor of Mason Rudolph as Will Levis ' backup. Cowherd feels that Willis has proven himself to be enticing enough for McCarthy to make the change.
"Let's face it. With Aaron, Aaron did the best job possible," Cowherd said. "But do you really think Aaron and Mike McCarthy (will work)? McCarthy's went and hired a new staff, one of them doesn't really see eye-to-eye with Aaron. It doesn't feel like an ideal fit."
Cowherd also believes the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns should respectively stick with Tua Tagovailoa and Shedeur Sanders for one more season, the Indianapolis Colts should roll with Riley Leonard and the New York Jets should take LSU's Garrett Nussmeier in the second round of April's 2026 NFL Draft.
He thinks the Arizona Cardinals would best be served trading Kyler Murray away and trading down in the draft to take Alabama's Ty Simpson , who's been mocked to the Steelers in recent projections.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Cowherd: Free Agent QB Better Option for Steelers Than Aaron Rodgers
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