Did Aaron Rodgers just play his final NFL game where his last pass was a pick 6? Rodgers explained his next step

Less than 30 minutes had elapsed since the clock expired on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ playoff hopes and, perhaps, on Aaron Rodgers’ career.

Less than 30 minutes had passed since the Steelers lost a game so thoroughly that their prized quarterback spent the final 2:39 on the sideline, as a franchise known for its black-and-gold Terrible Towels instead waved a white flag.

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So when Rodgers took the podium to address media and to reflect, he was predictably uninterested in sharing a declaration about his future.

His 21^st pro season was complete. He’d played in 17 games, playoffs included, fighting through fractures in his left non-throwing wrist to keep suiting up even as his 42nd birthday came and went. For Monday night, that was enough.

“I’m not going to make any emotional decisions at this point,” Rodgers said after the Steelers’ 30-6 loss to the Texans. “Such a fun year. A lot of adversity, but a lot of fun. Been a great year overall in my life in the last year, and this is a really good part of that, coming here and being a part of this team. So it’s disappointing to be sitting here with the season over.”

As he did following 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, the four-time MVP and Super Bowl XLV champion indicated he will take time before making any decisions.

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A darkness retreat may not determine whether it’s time for Rodgers to hang up his cleats. But a clear mind, rather than a playoff loss-tinted one, will assist.

“Just get away,” Rodgers said, “and then have the right conversations.”

Did he consider the possible finality entering Monday’s game?

“I’ve answered this before,” Rodgers responded when asked. “Every game could be my final game.”

So while he lauded Pittsburgh as “a special place,” speculation will continue about whether the Pro Football Hall of Fame committee will begin considering Rodgers for entry in 2030 or not until later.

ESPN’s «Monday Night Football» broadcast crew members, who have met with Rodgers for production meetings this season, indicated their expectations.

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Sideline reporter Lisa Salters said Rodgers answered a question about whether this season was his last with a “probably.” Color analyst and Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman expressed his expectation at multiple points during the fourth quarter.

“I think we are watching Aaron Rodgers’ last game,” Aikman said, in part.

He added later: “If I was betting, I’d say this is the last game we’ll see him play.”

Texans swarmed Rodgers all night, returning 2 takeaways for touchdowns

The Steelers’ offensive performance against a stingy Houston defense didn’t reflect the caliber of Rodgers’ career in aggregate. But how often do players truly leave on their own terms and at their prime?

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Rodgers has started 279 games, regular-season and playoffs, since the Packers selected him with the 24th overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft.

His 50.8 passer rating Monday night ranked in the bottom 3 percent of his performances, his eighth-least efficient rating and seventh if one were to eliminate the 2023 regular-season opener in which Rodgers dropped back just twice before an Achilles tear ended not only his night but his entire season.

Rodgers completed 17 of 33 pass attempts for 146 yards, no touchdowns and an interception on Monday. He lost another fumble on a strip sack. The opportunistic Texans took both turnovers home.

With 11:34 to play in the fourth quarter, Texans defensive linemen Will Anderson Jr. and Sheldon Rankins swarmed Rodgers for a sack and strip that Rankins returned 33 yards for a touchdown.

“At some point, they’re going to get a chance when you’re in a lot of one-dimensional passing situations,” Rodgers said. “I feel like we had to slide and chip to at least one of them most of the game, but they’re both All-Pro caliber players.”

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Then with 2:52 to play, facing an 18-point deficit, Rodgers knew he needed to try something.

He targeted tight end Pat Freiermuth 16 yards downfield, Texans safety Calen Bullock jumping the route to intercept what could be Rodgers’ final NFL throw.

The 42-year-old quarterback ran after the 22-year-old safety in case he could stymie yet another turnover returned for a touchdown.

But Texans slot cornerback Jalen Pitre instead pushed Rodgers out of bounds at the 15-yard line to clear his teammate’s path.

That sealed the decision on a night when the Steelers converted just two of 14 (14.3%) third-down attempts compared to Houston’s 10 of 15 (66.7%). Rodgers attributed the inefficiency to a bevy of third-and-long plays, problems scattered through Pittsburgh’s plays on first and second downs.

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Drops, missed assignments and mental errors abounded, Rodgers said. He was surprised at how different the game execution looked from what he saw during the week at practice. Rodgers absorbed 12 hits and threw four batted passes on a pressure-heavy night. He didn’t attempt a single scramble and the Steelers never found the end zone.

“Against a good defense like this, you’re not going to get many opportunities,” Rodgers said. “When you get them, you got to make the most of them.

“We just didn’t make the most of any of the little opportunities.”

2025 season may be the finale Rodgers was looking for

With his helmet already ditched in favor of a gray beanie, Rodgers watched the Steelers’ final six plays from the sideline as backup quarterback Mason Rudolph attempted one pass and five handoffs.

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Rodgers didn’t express much emotion as he exchanged on-field pleasantries with Texans ranging from coaches and quarterback C.J. Stroud to the defenders who’d wrecked his night. He did not look up at the cheering fans as he crossed the sideline to descend down one set of concrete stairs and up another into the tunnel of Acrisure Stadium.

Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, also a former Packers teammate, patted Rodgers’ back as they walked through the tunnel. As Rodgers entered the antechamber to the Steelers’ locker room, he turned and extended a hand to Valdes-Scantling for a shake and embrace, per footage from network cameras.

Then Rodgers disappeared into the locker room to join a team that head coach Mike Tomlin said didn’t need much in the way of a message.

“It’s not time for talk,” the 19-year Steelers head coach said after Pittsburgh failed to win a playoff game for the ninth straight year. “We agreed that we’ll meet tomorrow and go from there. But when you’re in this single-elimination tournament, man, there’s not a whole lot to talk about.

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“You win or you go home.”

Rodgers may go home and never come back to play in the NFL.

If he does, he’ll retire with an all-time regular-season record of 163-93-1 (.636), a career completion percentage of 65.1% and 66,274 career yards alongside 527 touchdowns to 123 interceptions.

Rodgers played this season as the active leader in passing yardage and passing touchdowns, per Pro Football Reference. He holds the all-time records for interception percentage — 1.4% — and passer rating, at 102.2 across his more than two decades.

One more sign of Rodgers’ longevity: the NFL-record 600 sacks he took.

And while Monday brings Rodgers’ all-time playoff record to 11-11 in starts, his 11 previous postseason runs included seven seasons with at least one win to advance. Following the 2010 season, Rodgers led the Packers to a Super Bowl title over the Steelers franchise he would later join. He wouldn’t go back to the biggest stage — but he’d continue to dominate with league records and accolades more than a decade later.

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So if this season is, indeed, the end for Rodgers, he’s made clear that he’s more comfortable with this finish than that of his two prior seasons with the New York Jets. Rodgers’ lavish praise of the Steelers and Packers on Monday night did not extend to the third franchise for which he played. His parting gift of defenses for Tomlin and Packers head coach Matt LaFleur did not mention anyone who guided him in New York.

Rodgers seemed to set aside many of the distractions that characterized his two Jets seasons as he led the Steelers to 10 wins and the AFC North title while completing 65.7% of his passes for 3,322 yards, 24 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

The winning season and playoff eligibility seemed to give Rodgers a sense of peace even if his final act, at least for this season, disappointed. His health comforted him, too.

“I felt good,” Rodgers said. I think that was the one thing that was the most thankful for, other than the wrist that bothered me the last [half] of the season. I felt pretty healthy all season, so I’m thankful for that.”

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And he was thankful, he said to play this year for the Steelers.

“I was fortunate to play in an incredible football city for 18 years,” Rodgers said. “And I never took it for granted and enjoyed that time there. And this has been a really beautiful backend to that first 18 to be able to be here for a year.

“This is a special place.”