Stephen A. Smith goes on scathing rant about Steelers' $180,000,000 plan B amidst Aaron Rodgers delay

Stephen A. Smith thinks the Pittsburgh Steelers are wise for waiting on Aaron Rodgers and hoping he signs with the team.

The Steelers have been linked to Rodgers, who has yet to sign, but their apparent Plan B is possibly trading for Kirk Cousins from the Atlanta Falcons. However, Smith doesn't think that plan is good as he thinks Cousins is not the same quarterback he once was and wouldn't help the Steelers.

“You mean Kirk Cousins that threw nine interceptions and one touchdown over the last five games? You mean that Kirk Cousins?” Smith said via First Take this morning (1:40).

Looking to predict NFL playoff Scenarios? Try our NFL Playoff Predictor for real-time simulations and stay ahead of the game!

“I don’t have any faith in Kirk Cousins. Hell no. There’s nothing that excites me, that enamors me, that tickles me in any way about Kirk Cousins being a Pittsburgh Steeler. Nothing at all.”

Cousins signed a massive four-year, $180 million deal with the Atlanta Falcons last offseason. However, in his first season with Atlanta, Cousins lost the starting job to Michael Penix Jr., as the veteran QB struggled.

Cousins was coming off a torn Achilles and it hindered his mobility, which hurt his play. He finished the year throwing for 3,508 yards, 18 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 14 games.

Aaron Rodgers, meanwhile, is still a free agent and has been linked to the Steelers, but for now, Pittsburgh enters OTAs with Mason Rudolph as the presumed starting quarterback.

Steelers' QB Mason Rudolph unbothered by Aaron Rodgers rumors

Mason Rudolph is the front-runner to be the Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback, but the talks of the team signing Aaron Rodgers or trading for a veteran quarterback have heated up.

Yet, until that happens, Rudolph isn't paying attention to that as he is trying to tune out the noise.

"That's nothing new to me. There's been constant noise," Rudolph said of the Steelers potentially adding another veteran quarterback at some point, via the team website. "That is the nature of the NFL. So I am used to that for a long time. Now I'm doing nothing but being the best I can be to help our team get better this spring."

Rudolph will compete with Skylar Thompson and Will Howard for the starting quarterback job, but at this point, Pittsburgh adding a veteran QB does seem likely.

The Steelers will open their season on the road against the New York Jets on Sept. 7.

About the author

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

Know More

Steelers Fans! Check out the latest Pittsburgh Steelers Schedule and dive into the Steelers Depth Chart for NFL Season 2024-25.

Edited by Cole Shelton