Wednesday’s “First Call” features somefuture plans for former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. He also gives us some personal favorites among the draft crop of quarterbacks.

We get a glance behind the curtain at what Aaron Rodgers might be thinking. The Steelers are looking at a complicated draft prospect in the secondary.

And we know the jersey numbers for the new guys in Black and Gold.

Not feeling Aaron Rodgers’ feelings

The Athletic’s Michael Silver went on the “Scoop City” podcast Monday with Dianna Russini and Chase Daniel. While there, Silver relayed a conversation he had with new Los Angeles Rams receiver Davante Adams, Aaron Rodgers’ former target in Green Bay and New York.

Based on information he gathered from Adams, Silver says Rodgers may be leery of signing with the Steelers because they aren’t making him feel special enough in their recruitment.

“I think Aaron wants someone to roll out the red carpet for him,” Silver told the show at the 1:03:20 mark. “That is what he is looking for. I’mnot sure if he would consider the Steelers doing that right now. I’m not positive how Aaron perceives that or how the Steelers perceive that. … Aaron would love to be swept off his feet.”

Adams says Rodgers’ desire to be nurtured through this process stems from how the Jets unceremoniously dumped him heading into free agency.

I’m not exactly sure what “the red carpet” means — especially if Rodgers is telling the world he only needs $10 million to play. I’m also not sure why Rodgers feels entitled to that, given that the Steelers are his only option right now.

Big Ben’s big plans?

Former Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger says he’d be interested in scouting for the club in some sort of capacity.

“If the Steelers were to ask me, ‘Would you look at this? Would you evaluate this? Walk me through what you see here.’ I would love to do that,” Roethlisberger said on his most recent “Footbahllin’” podcast. “I would love to be a part of that kind of stuff. I feel like I have a different view than a lot of people who just watch film would see.”

Roethlisberger said he could add some insight into the intangible end of things.

“I would love to go to a game and watch it, like a live game. I would just watch (a) player. Look at him when he comes off the field. Does he sit on the bench and pout? Does he go sit down, is he throwing his hands up and blaming other people, or is he like, ‘My bad?’”

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Based on what NFL scouts make versus what Roethlisberger made as a quarterback in the league, he may not want such a job full-time in retirement. But could Big Ben be somewhat of a consultant instead of a scout? Sure. As Roethlisberger mentioned, that type of job could make some sense.

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Let’s give it a try

In terms of Roethlisberger taking a swing at scouting during his podcast, the future Hall of Famer gave an endorsement to both Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart and Ohio State’s Will Howard as potential draft-worthy quarterbacks for the Steelers.

“I watched him play a few games, and I really liked what I saw from Jaxson Dart,” Roethlisberger said. “He’s got a gunslinger mentality. He can run. There’s just something there. … He can just make the ugly look good.”

Dart is likely a second-or-third-round option. Picking him at No. 21 seems a bit rich for my blood. If the Steelers want a QB in the third round or later, and Dart is gone, Roethlisberger likes the intangibles of Will Howard.

“Ireally like the kid Will Howard from Ohio State,” Roethlisberger said. “I just think he’s a winner.”

Specifically, Roethlisberger appreciated how Howard bounced back after his late slide on the turf helped to lose OSU’s regular-season game against Oregon. However, Howard and the Buckeyes ended up winning a national championship.

See more of Morrison

As we outlined in our latest NFL Draft preview podcast with Matt Williamson, this may not be a banner year for players in the secondary.

One promising cornerback is Notre Dame’s Benjamin Morrison. But he is trying to come off of a significant hip injury that ended his season in mid-October.

The Steelers were in attendance for his personal workout in Arizona. As noted by SteelersDepot.com, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin, BLESTO scout Matt McCreight, and senior scouting assistant Kelvin Fisher were on hand.

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Morrison still didn’t run a 40-yard dash. But he did check in at 6 feet, 191 pounds. In his career with the Irish, Morrison had nine total interceptions, 18 passes defended, and one touchdown.

The Steelers could use another outside corner on the depth chart behind Darius Slay and Joey Porter Jr. Morrison’s talent is intriguing, but (as Williamson pointed out) this is his second hip injury, which is a bad trend for a young corner entering the league.

Numbers known

We know some new Steelers jersey numbers for 2025. At least one of them is very familiar.

Recently reacquired quarterback Mason Rudolph will go back to the old No. 2 jersey number he used to have during his first tenure with the team prior to his one-year stint in Tennessee during the 2024 campaign.

Justin Fields used that number for his one season as a Steeler in 2024.

New cornerback Darius Slay will wear No. 23 with the Steelers. Slay wore No. 24 and No. 2 during his time in Philadelphia. Another ex-Eagle, running back Kenneth Gainwell, is getting No. 21. He had been No. 14 in Philly. But that is George Pickens’ number here.

Also, free-agent corner cornerback Bradin Echols is getting No. 26, while newly signed linebacker Malik Harrison gets No. 50.

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