Cam Heyward makes Aaron Rodgers pitch clear as Steelers’ QB pursuit intensifies

Cam Heyward makes Aaron Rodgers pitch clear as Steelers’ QB pursuit intensifies

Cam Heyward has two goals in mind as he enters Year 15 with the Steelers — even as the team has yet to solidify an answer at quarterback.

During an appearance Friday on “The Rich Eisen Show,” the All-Pro defensive tackle spoke about Pittsburgh’s recent flirtation with Aaron Rodgers, who not only visited the Steelers’ facility Friday but was a topic of conversation on Heyward’s podcast earlier in the week as the free agency waiting game continues.

“It’s funny. Everybody gave me crap, they said I called him out. I don’t think I really called him out. I just said I was not going to go on a darkness retreat to recruit him, that if he wants to be a Steeler, he can be a Steeler. That’s the pitch,” Heyward said, according to NFL.com.

Cam Heyward appeared on “The Rich Eisen Show” in March 2025. YouTube
Aaron Rodgers visited the Steelers’ facility in March 2025 as his free agency saga drags on. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST

“I don’t know why everybody thought, ‘Oh, Cam’s really going at him.’ Some fans felt like, ‘Oh yeah, keep doing that,’ and the other fans felt like, ‘Oh, man, you’re really gonna scare him off.’ I’m not scaring anybody off. I just want to win games and play good football.”

Heyward, 35, stirred buzz on Tuesday when he said he wouldn’t be game for a darkness retreat in an effort to recruit Rodgers, 41, to the Steel City.

The ex-Jets quarterback, who has been candid about his unique offseason activities, is at the top of free-agent wish lists for both the Steelers and Giants.

Cam Heyward has played his entire NFL career with the Steelers. Getty Images

“I ain’t doing that darkness retreat. I don’t need any of that crap,” Heyward previously said on his “Not Just Football” podcast. “Either you want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler or you don’t. That’s simple. That’s the pitch. If you want me to recruit, that’s the recruiting pitch. Pittsburgh Steelers, if you want to be a part of it, so be it. If you don’t, no skin off my back.”

The Steelers are coming off a 10-7 campaign guided by Justin Fields and Russell Wilson.

Fields, 26, opened the season at 4-2 when he filled in for an injured Wilson, who had won the starting job out of training camp.

The Steelers are coming off a 10-7 season. AP

The 36-year-old Wilson took over in Week 7 and won four straight before getting his first “L” in a November loss to the Browns.

The Steelers closed out the season on a five-game skid that concluded with a 28-14 wild-card loss to the Ravens.

Fields has since signed with the Jets on a two-year, $40 million deal while Wilson remains unsigned as of Monday.

The Steelers re-signed backup quarterback Mason Rudolph earlier this month after he spent the past season with the тιтans.

Aaron Rodgers spent the past two seasons with the Jets. Robert Sabo for NY Post

Rodgers, who has been spending time this offseason on the West Coast, “spent about six hours” at the Steelers’ facility Friday, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who described the interaction as “a positive visit.”

Both parties “will stay in touch,” per Schefter.

Not long after Rodgers’ visit concluded, the Giants added journeyman QB Jameis Winston.

The former first-overall pick agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal after spending the 2024 season with the Steelers’ rival Browns.

However, even with the Winston signing, the Giants have not shut the door on Rodgers.

The four-time league MVP finished his second and final season with the Jets by throwing for 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 17 games.

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