It's the NFL news the world was waiting for, but Los Angeles Chargers fans were hoping it wasn't going to happen.
On Thursday, it was reported that quarterback Aaron Rodgers had agreed to a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers to be their new starting quarterback in 2025. Rodgers had spent the last two years with the New York Jets after a long career with the Green Bay Packers.
This could be the swan song season for Rodgers at 41, so he could either showcase what has made him a multi-time MVP winner or show regression. It presents a whole new challenge to the Chargers entering the 2025 season.
Chargers' matchup with the Steelers just got more interesting
The Chargers and Steelers will face off in Week 10 of the regular season. This will be the week after the Los Angeles Rams travel to Nashville to play the Tennessee Titans. The Week 10 matchup, though, is in primetime as it is a Sunday night game on NBC.
Rodgers doesn't have a long history of playing against the Chargers, having faced them only three times, with the last matchup being back in 2019. In three games, he is 2-1 against the Chargers, but has not beaten them since the team moved to Los Angeles. Rodgers has thrown for 663 yards and seven touchdowns to zero interceptions in those contests.
While Rodgers hasn't completely torched the Chargers' secondary, he has protected the football and been a challenge for the team, except for the last time they played, about six years ago. That will surely be an interesting test for an LA secondary that is being retooled, with 2024 fifth-round picks Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart taking on more starting roles at cornerback.
Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh will need to have his team ready to go around the halfway point to ensure they can beat what now appears to be a playoff-contending team. Rodgers might be at the tail end of his career, but he can still play better than half the quarterbacks in the NFL, so this won't be an easy game for the Chargers.