When Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers were eliminated from the 2025 playoffs at the hands of the Houston Texans, many believed Rodgers’ career might end with a pick-six. But that is no longer the reality because the 42-year-old quarterback is officially returning for his 22nd NFL season, which, at the same time, is also going to be his last in the NFL.

“Yes,” Rodgers said when asked whether this would be his last season. “This is it.”

Aaron Rodgers had already made up his mind about returning for the 2026 season shortly after the most recent NFL Draft, which took place in Pittsburgh. And while making that decision, Rodgers admitted that conversations with his wife, Brittani, as well as with general manager Omar Khan, played major roles.

“I had a lot of conversations with Mike (McCarthy) and Omar for a while, and a lot of conversations with my wife, and after the draft came to a conclusion that I want to play, I want to come back,” Rodgers said when asked about the decision-making process of his eventual return.

The latest development on Rodgers’ future with the Steelers gained momentum months after the veteran quarterback revealed he planned to speak with his wife before deciding on his football future. Ahead of Pittsburgh’s Wild-Card matchup against Houston, Rodgers explained:

“I’m thinking about this week, but obviously I’m 42 years old and I’m on a one-year deal. Whenever the season ends, I’ll be a free agent. So that’ll give me a lot of options if I still want to play. I mean, not a lot of options, but there’ll be options, I would think, maybe one or two, if I decide I still want to play…I don’t really want to get too deep into it, you know? Obviously, I’ll talk to my wife and then, you know, hopefully that’s a decision down the line, but I’m not really going to talk about anything.”

At that point, the four-time MVP genuinely seemed uncertain whether he wanted to continue playing football. But months later, after a lengthy offseason full of uncertainty, Rodgers officially decided to return on another one-year contract with Pittsburgh shortly before the Steelers opened OTAs on May 18.

Still, the process was never particularly simple for either Rodgers or the franchise. For starters, Pittsburgh reportedly established multiple soft deadlines throughout the offseason for Rodgers to make a final decision. But the quarterback continuously avoided them. On top of that, Rodgers believed his time with the Steelers had likely already come to an end.

For broader context, when Pittsburgh originally signed Rodgers before the 2025 season, many around the league viewed it as a one-year arrangement from the beginning. For Rodgers, however, that feeling only grew stronger after former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin stepped away from the organization. It was only after re-signing with Pittsburgh for 2026 that Rodgers publicly admitted how emotional that situation had been for him.

“I love Mike T,” Rodgers said in his first offseason media presence. “I really appreciate the opportunity to come in last year and love my experience with him. And I thought when he said he was stepping away, that was an emotional moment just because we all love him so much and care about him. And, you know, I thought that was probably it for me in Pittsburgh.

Now Rodgers is officially returning for his second season with the Steelers and his 22nd overall NFL campaign after throwing for 3,322 yards, 24 touchdowns, and seven interceptions while completing 65.7% of his passes with a 94.8 passer rating during the 2025 season.

And while conversations with his wife clearly played a major role in Rodgers ‘ decision to return for one final year, his former head coach and Pittsburgh’s current head coach, Mike McCarthy, also played a significant role in bringing Rodgers back.

Aaron Rodgers finds it interesting to work with Mike McCarthy again

Amid the uncertainty surrounding his return, it became pretty evident that several people played meaningful roles in Aaron Rodgers ultimately decision to come back for the 2026 season. At the same time, though, it was Mike McCarthy who ultimately carried the most weight in Rodgers’ decision to return for one final NFL season.

“When the decision was made to hire Mike (McCarthy), I sort of opened my mind back up to coming back,” Rodgers added.

In fact, Steelers insider Brendan Howe later revealed that Rodgers himself encouraged Khan to interview McCarthy to gain an outside perspective on the organization. And once the possibility of that partnership became serious, the quarterback “thought it would be a pretty interesting thought to come back and work with Mike.”

Now, the reunion between the longtime quarterback and head coach is officially happening. Rodgers and McCarthy previously spent more than a decade together with the Green Bay Packers, where Rodgers won two MVP awards along with his first Super Bowl title under McCarthy’s leadership.

And while it is no secret their relationship ended on a rocky note, reports have also suggested skepticism about whether Rodgers and McCarthy could clash again during the 2026 season. Still, the quarterback clearly seems motivated by the idea of spending his final NFL season playing under the same head coach who originally helped him become a full-time starter in Green Bay.

How that final chapter ultimately unfolds, though, is something everyone will find out only once the 2026 season officially begins.