There’s a lot of time left in the 2025 NFL season, but the Pittsburgh Steelers’ decision to sign Aaron Rodgers might just pay off. Rodgers led the Steelers to a touchdown on his first drive with the team, ending a drought that dated to 2023.

That momentum carried through to the rest of the contest, as Rodgers threw four touchdowns in a fantastic 34-32 win in his Steelers debut against the New York Jets on Sunday.

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Things started on the team’s first drive. After getting the ball with 9:15 in the first quarter, Rodgers took the Steelers on a 10-play drive. With 3:44 left, Rodgers found wideout Ben Skowronek in the end zone for the team’s first touchdown of the year.

The score marked the first time since 2023 the Steelers scored a touchdown on their opening drive. That’s right, the Steelers failed to score a touchdown on every single one of their first drives last season. The team came away with a few field goals on first drives last year, but never managed to step foot in the end zone.

The drought carried back to Week 16 of the 2023 NFL season. That was the last time the Steelers managed a first-drive touchdown in a game. That drive lasted just two plays, as Mason Rudolph hit George Pickens with an 86-yard touchdown pass.

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If you needed more evidence that the Rodgers-Steelers partnership might work, the touchdown also marked the first time the Steelers have scored on a season-opening drive since 2008. Pittsburgh went on to win the Super Bowl that season.

But Rodgers’ strong start didn’t end there. The 41-year-old led the team to a field goal the next time out. After the Steelers’ third drive ended with a punt, Rodgers managed a nine-play scoring drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Jonnu Smith with just :32 seconds left before halftime.

Rodgers’ counterpart, Justin Fields, was equally impressive in the first half. Thanks to Fields and the offense, the team did not punt at all during the first half Sunday, the first time the Jets accomplished that feat since 1991. Despite Rodgers’ second quarter heroics, Fields led the Jets to a narrow 19-17 lead at halftime.

Things began slowly in the third quarter. After three straight drives that resulted in punts, Fields ran in a short touchdown to make it 26-17. Rodgers refused to go quietly, answering with a nine-play scoring drive that ended with another passing touchdown, this time to Jaylen Warren.

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The Jets quickly gave Rodgers an opportunity for another score. Jets returner Xavier Gipson fumbled the kickoff, giving the Steelers the ball at the 22-yard line. Two plays later, Rodgers found Calvin Austin III for another touchdown pass. This one gave the Steelers the 31-26 lead.

Fields and the Jets refused to go away quietly. Fields led another excellent drive. With the ball on the 1-yard line, the Jets went for it on fourth down. Fields faked a handoff and kept the ball, easily walking it in to put the Jets back on top.

After two failed drives, Rodgers got the ball back with 3:13 left and his team trailing by a point. He had one more heroic drive in him, taking the Steelers down to the 42-yard line with just 1:01 remaining. Chris Boswell drilled a 60-yard field goal to give the Steelers the 34-32 lead.

After an excellent return by Arian Smith, Fields and the Jets failed to convert on fourth down, giving Rodgers the win.

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It’s tough to overstate how well both quarterbacks performed in the contest. Despite losing, Fields threw for 218 yards and a touchdown. He added 48 rushing yards and scored two rushing touchdowns in the loss. It was quite the performance for Fields, who was making his first start with the Jets after signing a two-year, $40 million deal with the team in the offseason. Fields was also out for revenge in the start, as he started six games with the Steelers last season.

Despite Fields’ numbers, Rodgers was the better quarterback Sunday.

In his Steelers debut, Rodgers completed 22 of 30 passes for 244 yards and four passing touchdowns. It was a vintage performance from Rodgers, who showed signs of age during a disappointing 5-12 season with the Jets last year.

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It may have just been one game, but Rodgers proved he still has some gas left in the tank. Pittsburgh shouldn’t need Rodgers to be this good all season, as the team’s defense should perform better moving forward, but it must have been nice for Steelers fans to see their quarterback step up his game in such a big way after the team struggled to put up points last season.