Rodgers returns – Aaron Rodgers is officially back with the Steelers for his 22nd NFL season, putting him on pace to pass Peyton Manning for third-most touchdown passes in league history, though the same slate of records could also shift in other directions.
Aaron Rodgers’ official return with the Steelers for his 22nd NFL season brings an immediate shift in the numbers that have followed him for years.. The next big milestone is waiting in the touchdown-passing list. where he’s close enough that the start of the season could quickly rewrite where he stands.
Rodgers has thrown 527 touchdown passes in his NFL career. Peyton Manning finished his career with 539, meaning Rodgers needs 13 more touchdown passes to move ahead of Manning for third-most in NFL history. If Rodgers stays healthy, he’s positioned to eclipse Manning early in the season.
The touchdown list still has a long stretch beyond that next step.. Rodgers would likely need two more seasons to reach second place, currently held by Drew Brees with 571 career touchdown passes.. Tom Brady’s all-time record of 649 touchdown passes also remains in a different class, and it appears insurmountable.
Not every record is a lock, though.. Rodgers is currently tied for the highest career passer rating in NFL history with Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson at 102.2.. The gap here is timing and recent form: Jackson’s passer rating was 103.8 last year, while Rodgers’ was 94.8.. If both quarterbacks play at the same level in 2026, Jackson would take first place in the record books by himself.
Rodgers could also drop in the career passer rating rankings behind Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes.. Burrow sits at 101.1 and Mahomes at 100.8, positioned as third and fourth in NFL history in career passer rating right now.. The best career passer rating mark is a record Rodgers may not be able to hold through the end of the season.
Another benchmark Rodgers could lose sits in a category that’s usually harder to move: interception percentage.. He has thrown 123 interceptions in 8,743 career passes, a career interception rate of 1.41 percent.. Rodgers is just barely ahead of Jacoby Brissett of the Cardinals at 1.42 percent. and he’s not far ahead of Justin Herbert at 1.7 percent. with Burrow and Mahomes at 1.8 percent.
Even with the revolving possibility around these numbers, the impact on Rodgers’ broader legacy is less measurable by a single season. The figures will change, but he’s still described here as an all-time great regardless of what happens this year, including at age 43.
What the record list shows—touchdowns. passer rating. and interception percentage—has one shared feature: Rodgers is near key thresholds now. which means early-season momentum could lift him in one column while results in 2026 could shift the top spot in others.. He’s a 13-touchdown swing from surpassing Manning for third place. yet the passer rating and interception-rate leaderboards each include close rivals whose current marks could move ahead depending on how the next season’s numbers land.
Aaron Rodgers Steelers Peyton Manning NFL records touchdown passes passer rating interception percentage Drew Brees Tom Brady Lamar Jackson Joe Burrow Patrick Mahomes