Aaron Rodgers, 42, told reporters “Yes, this is it” when asked if the upcoming season would be his last, saying he will retire after the 2026 NFL season. The longtime quarterback signed a one-year contract Monday to return to the Pittsburgh Steelers for his se
Aaron Rodgers walked into the next chapter with a single, blunt answer.
Asked Wednesday whether the upcoming season would be the last of his career. the 42-year-old quarterback told reporters. “Yes. this is it.” It caps a career that has stretched for more than two decades and leaves him with the kind of résumé that rarely gets assembled—Super Bowl wins. MVPs. and statistical ranks that still look like they belong to an era of their own.
Rodgers will retire after the 2026 NFL season. ending a long run that has made him a fixture of the league for years. This time, the decision came after a long internal pause. He spent more than four months deciding whether to return for a 22nd NFL season before signing a one-year contract Monday to return to Pittsburgh for his second season with the Steelers.
One year ago, Rodgers had suggested the 2025 season could be his last. He ended up helping Pittsburgh earn the AFC North division title and a playoff berth.
For this season, he said he felt “some doubt” before deciding to re-sign with Pittsburgh after April’s NFL draft. A factor in his choice was the Steelers’ new coach, Mike McCarthy—an old connection. Rodgers played for McCarthy in Green Bay for 13 seasons.
Rodgers finished the 2025 season with his highest completion percentage and passer rating since 2021, along with 24 touchdowns—his fewest ever in a season in which he played at least 10 games.
“I thought that was probably it for me in Pittsburgh,” Rodgers told reporters. “But when the decision was made to hire Mike, I started opening my mind back up to coming back.”
What has followed him through the years—beyond awards and headlines—has been the rare steadiness at a position where even great quarterbacks can’t always avoid costly mistakes. Rodgers is known for how rarely he turned the ball over relative to other high-usage quarterbacks of his era. Despite attempting 8. 743 passes. sixth-most in league history. he threw interceptions on only 1.4% of them. a percentage that ties for the best all-time.
His early career shows just how dramatic that shift was. After throwing 13 interceptions during his first season as a starter in 2008, he went on to throw double-digit interceptions just once over his next 13 seasons.
His most iconic years came in Green Bay. Rodgers earned all 10 of his Pro Bowl honors there. starting as a backup to Brett Favre before growing into an elite passer of his own. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the Super Bowl during the Packers’ victory to cap the 2011 season. He was also named the league’s Most Valuable Player. Rodgers won the award again in 2014, 2020 and 2021.
He won four Super Bowls, with his total second only to Peyton Manning all-time.
Rodgers’ path to the top didn’t follow the most common blueprint. After high school in Chico. California. he attended Butte College. a junior college that sat multiple rungs lower than major college football. His success at Butte brought him to Berkeley. California. where he starred at California and became viewed as a first-round draft talent in the NFL.
On draft night in 2005. with cameras trained on him as he tried to maintain his composure. he sat in a green room for hours as 22 teams passed on him before Green Bay selected him 24th overall. For the next three years. he served as an understudy to Favre before taking over as Packers starter in 2008. at age 25.
When Rodgers said Wednesday that this is it. it landed with the weight of a decision that has moved from possibility to certainty. After all the months of thought and the one-year contract to return. the league’s longtime wonder at the position now has a deadline. He will end his career with a Super Bowl title and as one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the history of pro football—ranked tied for first all-time in passer rating. fourth in passing touchdowns and fifth in passing yards.
Aaron Rodgers retirement 2026 NFL season Pittsburgh Steelers Mike McCarthy NFL MVP Super Bowl passer rating Hall of Fame