Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers announced on Wednesday that he would retire after the NFL’s 2026 season, saying, “This is it.”
During a press conference, Rodgers was asked by a reporter if he thought that this season could be his last.
“Aaron, do you believe that this could be your last year? Do you even think of that right now?” a reporter asked.
“Yes,” Rodgers answered. “This is it.”
Rodgers, who recently “signed a one-year contract worth up to $25 million,” also spoke about how, after former Steelers coach Mike Tomlin stepped down after 19 years with the team, he “thought” that it “was probably it” for him with the Steelers, according to ESPN.
“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 I thought that was probably it for me in Pittsburgh,” Rodgers explained. Rodgers added he began to open his mind to return to the team “when the decision was made” to hire Mike McCarthy as the new head coach.
During the press conference, Rodgers was also asked what the “decision-making process” was like for him in deciding to return to the team. The Steelers quarterback responded that he had had many conversations not only with McCarthy but also with the Steelers’ General Manager, Omar Khan, and Rodgers’ wife.
“A lot of conversations with Mike and Omar, for a while….I just had a lot of conversations with my wife about it, and after the draft, came to the conclusion that I wanted to play and wanted to come back,” Rodgers explained.
Rodgers’s comments come as the former Green Bay Packers quarterback will be turning 43 years old this December, and “is the oldest player in the NFL,” NBC News reported.