INDIANAPOLIS - Aaron Rodgers' potential return to quarterback the Steelers again in 2026 remains a wait-and-see proposition, but General Manager Omar Khan isn't anticipating the wait for a resolution to be as long as it was a season ago.
"The door is open to have Aaron back," Khan emphasized multiple times today at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Rodgers didn't sign with the Steelers as a free agent last season until June 5 and didn't make his first appearance at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex until the first day of mandatory veteran minicamp on June 10.
"I think the circumstances are a little different, but just conversations we had, I think neither side wants to have this drag on like it did last year," Khan continued. "I spoke to him last week. (Head coach) Mike McCarthy has spoken to him. He knows how we feel and I think we know how he feels about us.
"It was a good experience for both sides. Unfortunately, we didn't reach our goals on winning the games that we wanted to win at the end but there's a mutual respect there."
Rodgers went 10-6 in his first season as the Steelers' starter. He completed 65.7 percent of his passes and threw for 3,322 yards, with 24 touchdown passes and seven interceptions.
He also assumed a leadership role almost immediately, a contribution that was referenced often by his teammates and coaches throughout a season that saw Rodgers turn 42 on Dec. 2.
"Was I surprised? No, because we had done our homework on him," Khan assessed. "We kind of knew the player he was and the person he was, too. It was right on point. He was awesome to have around, he really was.
"The one thing people don't talk enough about him, his toughness is real. He is a tough football player. I thought that resonated with his teammates."
With Rodgers' return still uncertain, "all options are on the table," Khan said.
Should Rodgers return, there may still be work yet to do in the quarterback room.
"Like all the fans, we're all searching for the next franchise player, the guy that's going to be our quarterback for 10 to 15 years," Khan said. "It might be Will (Howard), we don't know. We're excited to work with Will. We really liked him coming out last year (as a sixth-round draft pick from Ohio State). Unfortunately, he got hurt and we didn't get a chance to see him in the preseason.
"We've watched the progression in practice and it's been exciting. I know the new coaching staff, specifically Coach McCarthy is excited to work with him.
"The one thing is the speed of the game, the anticipation. That just kind of comes with playing at this level. It's different than it is at the college level. We saw that improve every week. There's a lot to like."
Wherever the Steelers' search for that next 10- to 15-year player takes them, they will be looking for specific traits.
There are several, but I'll say we have to find the right quarterback that's going to be an AFC North (Division) quarterback," Khan maintained. "Playing in the AFC North, there's nothing like it, the cold weather, the rivalries, the division, the physicality of the division.
"It's got to be an AFC North quarterback."
