Fans react to Aaron Rodgers agreeing to deal with Pittsburgh Steelers

PITTSBURGH — Aaron Rodgers’ arrival in Pittsburgh could be a boom for businesses selling Steelers merchandise.

“It’s huge, I think everyone is on the fence about the Steelers right now,” Tim Piett said. he’s the general manager at “Yinzers in the Burgh” in the Strip District.

Piett says business from locals has been lukewarm lately, with the team annually around .500 and no playoff wins since 2016.

They’ve already had calls about Aaron Rodgers merchandise.

“The owner of the store is working on that. Everything is on hold because we don’t know what the situation is going to be. But, once the contract is signed, we’ll get on the fast track,” Piett said.

The fast track should mean about a week.

In the meantime, Rodgers is already impacting business. One woman is in town visiting family and had to make a purchase.

“My boyfriend really likes Aaron Rodgers and, apparently, he’s signing tomorrow with the Steelers. Had to buy him a sticker,” Riley Watson said.

When it comes to the Steelers, Pittsburghers have opinions.

Not everyone is happy with the news.

“He’s too old. We need a quarterback that’s going to stay. He’s going to be here one year and gone,” Lisa Sobek said.

Off the field, the quarterback is a frequent talk show guest and is known for darkness retreats and psychedelic drugs. On the field, he’s 41 and is two seasons removed from major surgery.

“I’m going to really enjoy him coming here,” Dave Guio said.

“I know Pitsburgh fans like to like their players, and he is a bit of a rub, for sure. I don’t know if Steelers fans will like him,” he said. “Winning cures everything.”

Another interesting topic is Rodgers’ choice of jersey number.

He’s most known for the number #12 but wore #8 in New York.

One fan said, if it’s between those two, it better be #8 because #12 is “sacred.”

Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw wore #12, but it has not been officially retired by the team.

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