Steelers Great Jerome Bettis Is Under Strong Belief That Pittsburgh Felt They Could 'Live Without' Justin Fields

It is clear that the Pittsburgh Steelers knew they needed to make strides on the offensive side of the ball this offseason, and whether that was going to be by continuing to develop with the offense they constructed for 2024, or bring in someone new was unknown. Obviously, the Steelers felt they needed to reset again at the quarterback position and decided to acquire four-time NFL MVP, Aaron Rodgers . Steeler Nation will now be watching the team start a different quarterback in Week 1 for the fifth straight season.

The Steelers' 2024 offense had a lot of highs and lows as they started the season with Justin Fields as their quarterback, but made the switch to Russell Wilson halfway through the season once he was healthy. Overall, the performance from the offense wasn't enough and the Steelers ended up moving on from both quarterbacks this offseason.

Despite the team no longer having Fields on the roster, it was reported that the Steelers wanted to keep him and even offered him a deal similar to the one that Fields ended up signing with the New York Jets. Despite those reports that the Steelers were interested in running it back with Fields earlier this offseason, not everyone is sold that the team did in fact view Fields as a better option than Rodgers.

Former Steeler and Hall of Fame running back, Jerome Bettis was on The Zach Gelb Show recently and talked Steelers with the host, Zach Gelb. When discussing the team bringing in Rodgers and moving on from Fields, Gelb asked Bettis if he wishes Pittsburgh would've held onto Fields. Bettis' answer might surprise some fans.

"What people don't understand is, he (Fields) was in the building every single day," said Bettis on the Steelers moving on from Fields. "They got a chance to see him every single day. When they made the decision not to bring him back, it was clearly something that they saw, that they said, 'We can live without.'"

While there was definitely some questions around whether or not Fields could continue to develop and grow within Arthur Smith's offense in Pittsburgh, his talent was still undeniable when he was in the game. Talent level was never an issue for Fields, but that hasn't always translated to success in the win column for the young veteran.

Talent not being an issue for Fields has a lot to do with what he is able to bring to an offense as a runner, but as a passer, there are still some unanswered questions. Those questions as a passer don't exist with Rodgers, so if the team wanted to move to someone with a more traditional skill set, it would be an easy decision.

Regardless if the Steelers actually did elect to move on from Fields because they felt something was missing after watching him last season or not, the team is now moving forward with Rodgers for the 2025 campaign with likely their long-term option yet to be determined.

Steelers Will Have Options Following 2025 Season To Replace Rodgers

Rodgers himself said that there is a good chance that the 2025 NFL season could be his last playing football, and many probably already had that thought as well prior to him saying that. The Steelers probably already knew how Rodgers felt about this potentially being his last season, which means they can get a jump start doing their research on their quarterback options for 2026 and beyond.

Many believe that the Steelers are going to look to make a splash in the 2026 NFL Draft as they are currently projected to have excessive draft capital by receiving multiple compensatory picks. The 2026 NFL Draft class of quarterbacks is also being hyped as a very good one and expected to produce several first round quarterbacks. However, there will be other options likely available to them as well.

Veteran quarterbacks are on the move more frequently in recent years, and there is a chance that the Steelers could look to take advantage of that looking for new regimes that are moving on from former first round quarterbacks that haven't completely delivered on expectations.

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