Pittsburgh reunites Aaron Rodgers & Mike McCarthy and all I can think is ... meh

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Inside: Aaron Rodgers is officially back in Pittsburgh. Plus, this season’s best games to watch, Robert Mays explaining the Vikings’ savviness and the Cowboys’ projections improving. Let’s go. This article is from The Athletic’s NFL newsletter. Sign up here to receive it directly in your inbox. Bringing back a cast of characters in the hopes of reclaiming glory is a risky endeavor. History is littered with warning signs. The second “Caddyshack,” second “Joker” or fourth “Jaws.” That “Indiana Jones” movie with “Crystal Skull” somewhere in its title. When Michael Jordan came back to play for the Wizards. However, there are also successes like “Top Gun: Maverick,” Tiger Woods’ performance at Augusta National in 2019 or LeBron James’ return to Cleveland in 2014. (And 2026?) I doubt the Rodgers-Mike McCarthy reunion fits neatly into either of those buckets. Pittsburgh’s best-case scenario would be a Super Bowl victory, of course, something Rodgers and McCarthy accomplished once in their 11 Green Bay seasons together by beating Pittsburgh itself in 2010. They now reunite for a big sequel 16 years later, after doing the NFL equivalent of failed spinoffs. McCarthy was let go by the Cowboys for failing to win in the postseason, while the Jets moved on from Rodgers after failing to sniff the postseason. The worst-case scenario? Still better than some reunions, as our Steelers beat reporter, Mike DeFabo, explains in his story on what’s next for Pittsburgh: 💬 “One could make a strong argument that Rodgers is the best of some unappealing options. “Even in his early 40s, Rodgers still has elite arm talent. He has an unparalleled football IQ. Last season, he passed knowledge down to younger players and, at the line of scrimmage, consistently got the Steelers into the best plays. “Perhaps more than anything, he was an incredibly willing and hands-on mentor to rookie QB Will Howard from the first day at mandatory minicamp, something that should benefit 2026 third-round pick Drew Allar.” So while pairing McCarthy with the name Aaron Rodgers seems like the epitome of a boom-or-bust opportunity … these are still the Steelers. Mike Tomlin or not, it’s hard to imagine anything but another forgettable 10-7 season with a first-round exit. Yawn. For more on why Rodgers returned and the situation in Pittsburgh, I recommend reading Mike’s full story here. As for more exciting things to think about … It’s early. I get that. But we can still start our countdown to Week 1, when the NFL season begins with Patriots-Seahawks in Seattle. Only 115 days until that … um … Wednesday! The amazing part about the upcoming year: That Super Bowl rematch isn’t even among the schedule’s top draws. Earlier this morning, our staff picked the top must-see games for all 32 teams, and both those teams have more appealing games elsewhere. As for my favorites on that list, we’ll have to wait for the best games, since they’re mostly in the season’s second half: Yes, Week 17 is the time to avoid events. From New Year’s Eve (Ravens-Bengals) through Jan. 4 (Texans-Packers), don’t make plans to go anywhere that lacks a TV. One more game worth noting: Buccaneers at Lions, Week 11. In our staff’s list of big games, Dan Pompei explained why this one matters: 💬 “The Lions have been a measuring stick for the Bucs in recent years and could be again this season. The Bucs are coming off a bye while the Lions are coming off a game in Munich against the Patriots. “The Bucs have lost three of four to the Lions in the last three seasons, including a divisional playoff game in 2024, but have attempted to tilt the rivalry by signing three former Lions in Alex Anzalone, Al-Quadin Muhammad and A’Shawn Robinson.” For the full list of gotta-see games for all 32 teams, our story is unlocked for you here. We’ve seen plenty of sneaky-good additions this offseason, all of which my colleagues at “The Athletic Football Show” covered in last week’s episode. One especially stood out to co-host Robert Mays: the Vikings signing former Steelers cornerback James Pierre. Here was Mays’ explanation: 💬 “From Week 10 on, which is exactly when James Pierre started playing at a high clip, the Steelers were playing Cover 2 about 20 percent of the time, which was the fifth-highest rate in the league and a notable jump from what they had done in any previous season. That was the fifth-highest rate in the NFL. “Well, he’s going to Minnesota, where they’re doing it 26, 27 percent. And if you go back and just think about the best moments from Pierre’s second half of last season, a lot of it is where he’s playing that Cover 2 corner in the flat, sinking underneath, making stuff happen. “He was very adept at doing that stuff. And now he’s going to a place where they’re going to be asking their corners to do more of that than almost any other team.” Plenty more in the full episode, including on the ageless defensive tackle Calais Campbell returning to Baltimore for his 19th season. You can watch it all here. 👀 Way-too-early projections. Schedule in hand, Austin Mock uses his model to evaluate Super Bowl odds and playoff projections for every team. Things get better and better for Seattle. 📓 Supplemental draft. Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby is a high-profile prospect embroiled in a gambling scandal, and he must soon decide whether to enter this summer’s draft. The stakes are big. 🔨 Not easy being Shedeur? Deion Sanders, who says his son went “through hell” as a Browns rookie quarterback, plans to meet with new coach Todd Monken. Uh-oh. 📈 Good news in Dallas. The Cowboys saw oddsmakers move the team’s projected win totals from 8.5 to 9.5 after the schedule release. Why? As my colleague Doug Kezirian explains, the Cowboys “will not endure a single short-week road game and also will have at least 11 days off before their two toughest road opponents.” Nice. ▶️ Friday’s most-clicked: Ranking all 32 schedule release videos, of course. 📫 Enjoyed this read? Sign up here to receive The Athletic’s free NFL newsletter in your inbox. Also, check out our other newsletters. Spot the pattern. 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