When the Pittsburgh Steelers open their regular season against the Atlanta Falcons, they will be the NFL’s oldest team heading into the 2026 season, with an average age of 27.1. The roster is led by 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers, with Cameron Heyward (37), Cameron Johnston (34), Jalen Ramsey (31), Michael Pittman Jr., and DK Metcalf (28) among the team’s oldest players.
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With the Steelers’ veteran-heavy roster making headlines, Rodgers recently stopped by Not Just Football with Cam Heyward, where the two discussed the team’s age. Rodgers, meanwhile, pointed out several things he believes have contributed to older players becoming increasingly disrespected across the league.
“I love it,” said Rodgers when Heyward asked his thoughts on the Steelers having an older team. “I think they’re always going to find something. The older players have been less and less respected as the years go on. Part of that is because when you raise the minimum wage, some of the people in the middle get kind of weaned out. I do like that the P-Squad, unlike when I first started, you can have older guys on it, you know, bringing that to the roster.
“Like, the NFL is not a meritocracy, not purely a meritocracy. And there’s weird things around the veteran contracts. If you’re on the 53, the first day of the season, your contract’s guaranteed. So, a lot of teams now will cut veteran players and then bring them back, you know, like after the first day of the league year begins, which I think is a really weird part of it.”
For a broader context, the NFL’s termination pay rules help explain Rodgers’ point. Veterans with at least four credited seasons can receive 100% of their base salary if they are released after their team’s first regular-season game, provided they were on the active/inactive list.
This can make retaining certain veterans beyond Week 1 a significant financial commitment. That is why teams can sometimes release vested veterans before the season opener and bring them back later.
The strategy allows NFL teams with vested veterans to protect younger players from being exposed to waivers. At the same time, however, Rodgers’ argument about veteran players getting less respect as the years go on isn’t just about their contracts.
In fact, the 42-year-old argued that some players get roster opportunities because of what the team invested in them, while better players remain on the practice squad.
In simple terms, Aaron Rodgers believed that teams would rather keep their draft picks on the roster because of the investment they have made in them rather than keeping veteran players. At the same time, those same teams may then elevate veteran players from the practice squad instead of using the drafted players they had invested in earlier.
“Obviously, draft picks are valued more than others in certain places,” Rodgers added. “So, there’s certain guys on the team that didn’t actually earn it. Their draft spot earned it. There’s certain guys got cut that actually earned it and maybe P-squad guys, but I was telling the receivers this last week. I said the P-Squad now that 16 is a very important part of this. And look at every year what happens.
“Healthy scratches from 53 active players and P-Squad guys getting elevated every single week. So, you’re basically saying this guy’s only on the roster because he’s on a rookie contract or we don’t want to lose him because we drafted him and fill in the blank round but this guy who’s on the P-squad is a better player that’s why he’s going to play in the game this week even though he’s on the P-squad. That’s always been backwards to me.”
Since 2011, the league has used the rookie wage scale to determine the contracts of every player selected in the NFL Draft based on their slots. The 2026 rookie contract projections demonstrate this very clearly.
The No. 1 overall pick is earning roughly $54.6 million over four years, while the No. 32 makes $16.2 million across his four-year contract. The No. 257, meanwhile, gets a contract roughly $4.36 million after being picked. The teams, on the other hand, had invested heavily in their first-round picks, including substantial guaranteed money. Meanwhile, first-round picks also have the fifth-year option.
In simple terms, while performance remains the primary consideration, draft capital can influence roster decisions because teams have already invested substantial resources in acquiring and developing those players. However, that doesn’t stop the teams from elevating veteran players from the practice squad.
Teams are allowed to keep 16 players on the practice squad with an option to add a 17th player based on the International Player Pathway (IPP) program. However, the practice squad is no longer simply a waiting room for inexperienced players. Take the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 2025 season, for example.
The Bucs elevated veteran offensive lineman Michael Jordan, who started the season opener. Meanwhile, the team also elevated veteran Jason Pierre-Paul from the practice squad, who started three consecutive games for the Buccaneers from Week 16 to Week 18.
It simply illustrates Rodgers’ point that a player outside the 53-man roster can sometimes be trusted with a more significant game-day role than someone technically occupying a roster spot.
Ultimately, Aaron Rodgers’ argument comes down to the idea that NFL roster decisions are not always based purely on who is the better player. Contract rules, draft capital, and roster mechanics can all influence those decisions, creating the very system the veteran quarterback described as anything but a pure meritocracy.