Tim Benz: 2 reasons Steelers fans should want Aaron Rodgers — and you're going to hate both

Aaron Rodgers is an aging, declining, narcissistic distraction of a quarterback who is asking for too much money.

And I desperately hope the Pittsburgh Steelers sign him.

For two reasons. Neither of which you will want to hear.

First of all, regardless of who becomes the starting quarterback of the Steelers in 2025, from the painfully limited options that remain, the franchise is likely to backslide.

Let’s allow this extended run of franchise mediocrity to finally meltdown so that there is no debating that an overhaul is necessary.

Have the fabled “non-losing season streak” end in definitive fashion amid chaos and disorder in a circus atmosphere the likes of which we haven’t seen since the dearly departed “Killer B’s” days of Brown-Bell-Bryant and Big Ben.

Are any of us naive enough to truly believe that the egomaniacal Rodgers is going to be able to meet in the middle with Mike Tomlin and Arthur Smith and their hyper-conservative, overly controlling approach to offense?

Are we honestly supposed to assume that Rodgers is going to be able to keep both George Pickens and DK Metcalf happy under those constraints — to say nothing of validating tight end Pat Freiermuth and his $12.8 million cap hit next season?

Is Rodgers really supposed to thrive with minimal help from a spotty, inefficient run game? Is he even going to be able to survive through September with legs that are 41 years old, behind a line that is lacking experience and consistency?

Nah. No way. But it’s not going to be any better with Kirk Cousins or Russell Wilson. It wouldn’t have been much better with Daniel Jones, Justin Fields or Sam Darnold.

It’s a bad offseason to be bad at quarterback. So just sign Rodgers, and let’s watch the world burn. Embrace Black and Gold existential nihilism.

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Second, if Rodgers comes here under the circumstances that have existed this offseason, we can mercifully put to bed the national media narrative that Tomlin is some sort of force multiplier who is magically keeping the listing Steelers ship afloat when he has never been given a quarterback to work with since Ben Roethlisberger hurt his elbow.

Of course, that’s bogus gum-flapping from the on-camera members of the “Tomlin Defense Foundation” at all of the NFL national network partners and many league-wide print/online publications.

All of them play an illogical game where they twist themselves into a pretzel by trying to absolve Tomlin from any blame about how his rosters have been constructed, yet they simultaneously throw rose petals at his feet for being a maestro with a firm hand on the baton at all times keeping the orchestra together.

How is that possible?

Is Tomlin to be given credit for all of his hands-on scouting feedback, tape study of free agents, and his tireless road trips to the Senior Bowl and Pro Days across the county? Or is he completely divorced from the talent acquisition end of the job while Omar Khan, Kevin Colbert and Andy Weidl are to blame for those problems in recent years?

Which is it? It can’t be both.

Of course, the answer is it’s the former. Tomlin has his finger on the pulse of everything that goes on in that organization’s football operations — regardless of whether the national media only acknowledges that when it’s convenient to their narrative of Tomlin’s infallibility.

But now? After how all of this has gone down? Forget it. That balloon would be popped if Rodgers wears a Steelers jersey.

If the Steelers decide that Rodgers is going to be their quarterback for two years at a reported $90 million, there is no way on this earth to absolve Tomlin from responsibility for that decision.

Not with Russell Wilson still out there. Not after they let Justin Fields go to New York for less than half that cost.

Not after the Steelers could’ve outbid Seattle for Sam Darnold’s services at a lower average annual value than that over three years.

Not after the Steelers could’ve gotten involved in trade talks for Geno Smith or been more aggressive pursuing Matt Stafford or Daniel Jones.

There is no way that Rodgers comes to Pittsburgh for $45 million per year with all those options on the table without Tomlin being at the center of the decision-making.

If he wanted Darnold or Fields more, he could’ve told Khan to up his offers, especially if $90 million is going to go to Rodgers anyway.

The national media loves to throw darts at Rodgers. It also loves to shield Tomlin from them. If this Tomlin-Rodgers marriage happens and it goes badly in Pittsburgh, there will be no way to blame one while protecting the other.

Frankly, that shouldn’t have been the case when Roethlisberger came back for one last year in 2021. Or when Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett were drafted. Or when Mitch Trubisky, Wilson and Fields were acquired. Tomlin had significant responsibility for those decisions as well.

If Rodgers ends up being the quarterback at Acrisure Stadium in September, at least people outside of Pittsburgh will finally have to recognize that this time.

So, at least some good might come from this mess.