Aaron Rodgers admits he must soon decide whether to play on for another season or finally bring his iconic NFL career to an end.
The 42-year-old Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback is gearing up for a crucial regular-season finale against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, with a win needed to clinch the AFC North and make the playoffs.
Yet if Pittsburgh comes unstuck and misses out on the postseason, there is every chance Sunday’s game could be his last in the sport.
Rodgers told reporters he hasn’t ‘thought about’ returning next year, but will have options on the table if he does choose to play on.
‘I’m thinking about this week, but obviously I’m 42 years old and I’m on a one-year deal,’ he said. ‘So you know what the situation is. 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.
Aaron Rodgers admits he must soon decide whether to play on for another season or retire
The 42-year-old Steelers quarterback is gearing up for a crucial regular-season finale
‘I’ve enjoyed this experience, and everybody in Pittsburgh has been fantastic to me on and off the field. And it’s really what I was hoping for this experience was, it’s been even better than I was hoping.’
Rodgers signed a one-year, $13.65million contract with the Steelers in June after ending his disastrous two-year spell with the New York Jets.
After arriving in Pittsburgh, the Super Bowl champion and four-time MVP said he was ‘pretty sure’ his one year under Mike Tomlin would be his last in the NFL.
‘Yeah, I’m pretty sure this is it,’ Rodgers said on the Pat McAfee Show in June. ‘That’s why we just did a one-year deal. Steelers didn’t need to put any extra years on that or anything, so this was really about finishing with a lot of love and fun and peace for the career that I’ve had.’
He has since helped the Steelers to a 9-7 record and kept them in contention for the AFC North title by throwing for 3,028 yards with 23 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 65.6 percent pass completion.
Ahead of what could be his final outing, Rodgers is grateful to Tomlin and his Pittsburgh teammates for the experience.
‘If I hadn’t taken this path, I never would have met so many guys in the locker room who I now call close friends and wouldn’t have the experiences and the memories on the field, wouldn’t have been able to be in the room with Tom Arth again and Bake [Matt Baker] and be able to play for Arthur Smith and Mike Tomlin,’ he stressed.
‘And I feel like there would be a little hole in my life missing without having this chapter. So I’m thankful for this time.’
