In Pittsburgh, patience is now the quarterback’s strategy rather than just a virtue. The clock is ticking louder than ever in the Steelers’ QB room, which resembles a waiting room with less than a week until the NFL Draft. Art Rooney said the plan is “coming together.” With nothing tangible other than Mason Rudolph and Arthur Smith’s playbook, it appears to the outside world to be more akin to a quarterback scavenger hunt. They don’t have Aaron Rodgers. Nor Justin Fields. And looks like no strategy, as well? At least not a cheap one.

The major story twist—$40 million—coming into the picture. That is the 2025 cap hit associated with Kirk Cousins, a name quietly creeping back into the Steelers’ orbit. According to Mark Kaboly, Pittsburgh must be prepared to make the payment if it wants in. Or worse: overpay. For a desperate team with a limping quarterback plan, Cousins is more than simply a backup in Atlanta; he’s a $40 million insurance policy that’s being offered like bait.

On a recent talk show, Chris Mack and Kaboly didn’t hold back, dissecting the Steelers’ off-season improvisation session that’s felt more like a quarterback soap opera. Mack was stunned: “I can’t believe that was their plan going into the offseason. I have to look at it as: their plan was let’s get Justin (Fields) on the cheap because we still don’t 100% believe in him. They couldn’t get Justin on the cheap.… and once they got past Fields, they were scrambling somewhat. They’d pissed off Russell Wilson, I imagine.” Kaboly followed up with a sharper blow: “That is not a plan, man.”

The Falcons quarterback comes with a gaudy $40M cap hit in 2025. Not to mention $27.5 million in hard cash. “Would you even be willing to go down the route of Kirk Cousins? That’s a lot of money he’s due,” asks Kaboly. Yeah. That’s not just “a lot of money.” That’s absurd money for a guy who just watched his own team draft his replacement on night one. And yet, here we are—because the Steelers are running out of options faster than Aaron Rodgers is running out of Malibu sunsets.

The Falcons? They are playing hardball. They’ve got zero interest in doing Pittsburgh any favors. As Mack said, they’re gonna hold on to Cousins like a kid gripping the last Oreo. “Somebody’s going to call up Atlanta,” Mack said, “and be like ‘Okay, fine! We’ll give you a 2 and a 4… just give us Cousins.” And unless the Steelers want to be that desperate somebody, they’re stuck right in the middle of Rodgers’ retreat and Cousins’ ransom.

And oh yeah—Kirk isn’t just expensive. He’s old. Though he has recovered from an Achilles tear. He’s got playoff baggage heavier than Najee Harris on third-and-short. But still… he might just be the best available option left standing. Because when the dust settles? Tomlin’s going to need a body under center. And unless he’s ready to ride with Mason and a clipboard-holding rookie, that $40M Cousins bomb might be the only missile left in the chamber.

From Malibu to Mediocre — Tomlin eyes Cousins as Rodgers retreats

Aaron Rodgers finally spoke and somehow managed to say everything and nothing at once. On The Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers delivered his monologue: “It ain’t about the money. I’ll play for $10M… I told every team. It’s not about the money.”

Even while that seems generous, the Steelers’ interest has started to cool. And Chris Mack acknowledged it: “If you asked me before yesterday, I would have thought he was 85/15 playing. Feels a whole lot closer to 50/50 now because of whatever’s going on in his personal life,” Kaboly said, echoing the worry. Rodgers might still play, but his situation has become a chessboard of uncertainty. “He could’ve made it feel that way because he didn’t want to get people’s hopes up… but I still believe the Steelers truly feel he’s going to sign there.”

However, believing isn’t planning. And Tomlin—historically tight-lipped—has been talking to Rodgers “multiple times,” according to Kaboly. Yet Pittsburgh’s quarterback room gets closer to panic mode with each day that goes by and each hazy report.

That’s where Cousins re-emerges. He’s 36, expensive, and recovering. And he’s being quietly preserved in Atlanta as a summer trade chip for exactly this scenario. As Mack bluntly put it: “Somebody’s going to overpay… Falcons will be happy because they’ll have Cousins off the books and gotten something out of it.”

So here’s where Pittsburgh stands: Mason Rudolph as the current starter. Aaron Rodgers is floating somewhere between retirement and Malibu meditations. The NFL Draft is rapidly approaching. And Kirk Cousins on a $40 million leash, waiting to be yanked by a team bold (or desperate) enough to bite. And that team might be the Steelers. Because Mike Tomlin isn’t chasing vibes anymore. He’s chasing stability. And if Rodgers won’t commit? Then $40 million might be the cost of clarity.