- Aaron Rodgers said coach Mike McCarthy asked for 30 to 40 plays across Pittsburgh’s first two preseason games.
- The opponents are Green Bay and the New York Jets, the two teams Rodgers left.
- Pittsburgh’s season win total is 8.5, with the under juiced to -140 and the over at +115.
- The Steelers are +550 to win the AFC North, behind Baltimore at -115 and Cincinnati at +185.
PITTSBURGH – Aaron Rodgers said Monday that Steelers coach Mike McCarthy wants him on the field for 30 to 40 plays across Pittsburgh’s first two preseason games, which would be the most preseason work Rodgers has taken since 2018.
McCarthy Wants The Reps, But The Call Comes On Game Day
Rodgers relayed the request himself. “He (wants me out there for) 30 or 40 plays,” Rodgers said. “I said, ‘Mike, if you want me to play, I’ll play.’ I’m not saying I want to do it. But if he wants me to, I will.”
McCarthy stopped short of committing to it. “Those decisions are really gonna be made once we get up to it,” McCarthy said. “He’d like to play. I would like to see him play.”
Thirty to 40 plays is roughly a half of football, played twice. Rodgers has not carried that kind of August workload in eight years.
The Coach Who Gave Him His Last August Reps In 2018
McCarthy was named the 17th head coach in Steelers history in January, after Mike Tomlin resigned following 19 seasons. He coached Rodgers in Green Bay from 2006 through 2018 and went 125-77-2 there.
That final Green Bay season was also the last time Rodgers logged meaningful preseason snaps. He has taken almost none since: two series in the Jets’ 2023 preseason finale and nothing at all in 2025.
The schedule stacks the two storylines on top of each other. Pittsburgh opens the preseason at home against Green Bay, then hosts the Jets eight days later, so the reunion tour and the snap count land on the same two nights.
Zero Preseason Snaps In 2025, Then 3,322 Yards And 24 Touchdowns
Rodgers did not need August work last season. He played 16 games and completed 327 of 498 attempts, 65.7%, for 3,322 yards with 24 touchdowns against seven interceptions, took 29 sacks and posted a 94.8 passer rating.
That is a clean, efficient, low-turnover season rather than a spectacular one, and it carried Pittsburgh to a 10-7 finish and the AFC North title. The year ended in a 30-6 wild-card loss to the Houston Texans.
The argument for reps is timing with a new play-caller and a new offense. The argument against is that a quarterback who threw seven interceptions across a full season off zero exhibition snaps has already shown he does not need them.
The Win Total Is 8.5, With The Under At -140
The market prices Pittsburgh well below last season. The win total of 8.5 sits a game and a half under the 10 wins the Steelers banked, and the under is the juiced side at -140 against +115 on the over.
Those two prices imply about 58% and 46.5%, roughly 4.8 points of overround in a two-way market. The -140 is what the under pays, not the probability of it landing.
The read on legal NFL betting boards is whether Pittsburgh’s real chance of eight wins or fewer beats the 58% that price assumes, on a roster with a new coach, a new scheme and a quarterback in his last season.
An August injury is the tail risk the number cannot price, and the win total is where an absence would show up first.
+550 In The AFC North, +8000 For Super Bowl LXI
The division board prices two teams ahead of the reigning AFC North champion.
| AFC North winner | Price | Implied |
|---|---|---|
| Baltimore Ravens | -115 | 53.5% |
| Cincinnati Bengals | +185 | 35.1% |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | +550 | 15.4% |
| Cleveland Browns | +2000 | 4.8% |
Those four add to about 108.8%, close to 8.8 points of overround on the division market. Baltimore carries an 11.5-win total and Cincinnati 9.5, both above Pittsburgh’s 8.5, so the division price and the win totals tell the same story.
Further out, the Steelers are +3500 to win the AFC, an implied 2.8%, and +8000 on legal Super Bowl betting sites, a little over 1%. Those prices describe a team the market expects to be competitive and not contending, which is the backdrop against which McCarthy is weighing 30 to 40 exhibition snaps for a 42-year-old.
Green Bay On Aug. 13, Then The Jets, Then Atlanta On Sept. 13
Rodgers has said there is zero debate that 2026 is his final NFL season, which is the other half of the calculation on both sides. The snap distribution also sorts the depth chart behind him, where Will Howard and rookie Drew Allar are competing for the backup job.
Pittsburgh opens the preseason Aug. 13 at home against Green Bay, hosts the Jets on Aug. 21 and travels to Buffalo on Aug. 27. Every Steelers price on legal sports betting boards, from the 8.5-win total to the +550 division number, was on the board before Rodgers and McCarthy spoke Monday, and all of it can move across the three weeks left before the opener at home against the Atlanta Falcons on Sept. 13.
