The ink is barely dry on Mike McCarthy’s contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but a debate over the team’s soul is already raging, and a franchise legend is drawing a hard line in the sand against bringing in Aaron Rodgers. The Steel City is likely pushing to bring back veteran signal-caller Aaron Rodgers. While many want A-Rod back for one last ride involving a reunion with McCarthy, Steelers legend James Harrison wants the franchise to take a different direction.

“I just don’t want him (Aaron Rodgers) back,” James Harrison said on the Deebo & Joe podcast. “I don’t want him back because we need to be able to move on.”

With this comment, James Harrison wants the Steelers to go all-in on a rebuild and look for a franchise quarterback who can be the face of the franchise for the foreseeable future. While Aaron Rodgers had a solid 2025 season with 3,322 yards, 24 touchdowns, and just seven interceptions, at age 42, he isn’t the future of the franchise.

Aaron Rodgers entered last season as the NFL’s oldest starting quarterback at 41, ahead of Joe Flacco at 40, showing he could still play at a high level. While Philip Rivers returned at age 44, Rodgers finished the season as the second-oldest starting quarterback and is 42 this year. His declining mobility, near-zero rushing production, and an uncertain long-term future only underline the concerns Harrison has.

The legendary linebacker wants the Steelers to do something the franchise has avoided since the retirement of their icon, Ben Roethlisberger, in 2021. Big Ben, at the age of 21, was Pittsburgh’s QB1 since week 2 of his rookie season in 2004 and led the franchise to two Super Bowl championships and eight AFC North Championships in his illustrious 18-year career.

However, since Roethlisberger, the Steelers have started Kenny Pickett, Mitchell Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, and Aaron Rodgers and failed to win a single postseason game. It would seem that Harrison wants his beloved Steelers to actually move forward with a rebuild, as he recently alluded to on his podcast.

“This is a rebuild,” Harrison said on his Deebo & Joe podcast on Friday. “Period. I know the Steelers don’t want to say that or don’t want to believe that. If you don’t want to say it because it sounds bad, but if you actually believe it, that’s worse. Because the reality of it is that we have to actually rebuild this thing. We are going to have to have, and I call it this, a first or second pick losing season if we want to get a franchise quarterback.”

James Harrison isn’t happy with the Steelers’ approach to contending over the recent past. Veteran quarterbacks have been a recent trend, and now veteran head coaches have joined that list, too. Instead of bringing on a coach in their 30s for the future (as they did with their last four), the Steelers chose to move forward with 62-year-old Mike McCarthy. However, as per team owner Art Rooney II, the franchise isn’t ready to take this new direction.

Art Rooney II issues a clear mandate on the Steelers’ plans for a rebuild

Despite failing to win a postseason game in 2016, the Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t wavered from their strategy of contending every year. With this plan, Steel City hasn’t had a losing season throughout former head coach Mike Tomlin’s 19-year tenure, but has consistently struggled to make significant inroads in the playoffs, barring their Super Bowl win in 2009.

However, despite these major long-standing issues, team owner Art Rooney II remains adamant about contending despite failing to find postseason success.

“I’m not sure why you waste a year of your life not trying to contend,” Rooney said. “Obviously, your roster is what it is every year. It changes every year, so you deal with what you have every year and try to put yourself in a position to compete every year. Sometimes you have the horses, sometimes you don’t. But I think you try every year.”

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As it stands, the Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to contend, which implies that a return for Aaron Rodgers is still in the cards. However, whether this move will result in postseason success seems unlikely. Reuniting Rodgers with the coach who once delivered a Super Bowl sounds promising, but it’s been years since either thrived together, and their past fallout still lingers.