Aaron Rodgers update: Adam Schefter reveals potential 'soft deadline' for Steelers decision

As the Pittsburgh Steelers pursued Aaron Rodgers in free agency, the 2025 NFL Draft looked like a time for a decision. That came and went, and Rodgers is still a free agent – but ESPN’s Adam Schefter shared another potential date to watch.

Schefter shared a new update on the Rodgers situation as the Steelers still seemingly wait for him to decide. Pittsburgh drafted Will Howard, but is currently looking at Mason Rudolph as its starting quarterback in 2025 if Rodgers either signs elsewhere or doesn’t play.

But a mandatory minicamp scheduled for June 10-12 could be a date to monitor, according to Schefter. He suggested that as a potential “soft deadline” for something to happen.

“Basically, the Pittsburgh Steelers have a mandatory minicamp next month,” Schefter said Tuesday on NFL Live. “You’d figure that at some point before that minicamp, Aaron Rodgers might be giving an answer, right? Look, if he’s going to come in and play with Pittsburgh, you’d figure that he would want to be there to go through a new minicamp with his new teammates in a new offense, in a new city with in a new organization. If that mandatory minicamp comes and goes, it doesn’t mean he can’t suddenly sign with a team at some point this summer right before training camp. But it’s certainly would seem a little odd.

“So to me, I’m looking at next month as sort of a soft deadline for when we could potentially hear from Aaron Rodgers one way or another about whether or not he’s interested in playing for the Steelers and making that trip to Dublin this season to play the Minnesota Vikings.”

Rodgers – who was seen at the Kentucky Derby earlier this month – is going through the free agency process for the first time in his career, although multiple suitors appeared to drop out of the race. That includes the Minnesota Vikings, who eventually traded for Sam Howell to serve as J.J. McCarthy’s backup.

That leaves the Steelers as the favorite, although Rodgers continues to take his time with a decision. Speaking on The Pat McAfee Show last month, he explained the delay, noting aspects of his personal life that led him to wait before signing a deal.

“I’m in a different phase of my life,” Rodgers said. “I’m 41 years old, I’m in a serious relationship. I have off-the-field stuff going on that requires my attention. I have personal commitments that I’ve made, not knowing what my future was going to look like after last year, that are important to me. … I have a couple of people in my inner circle who are really battling some difficult stuff.

“So I have a lot of things that have taken my attention and have beginning in January away from football. That’s been where I’ve been focusing most of my attention on.”