{"id":98476,"date":"2025-09-25T13:46:08","date_gmt":"2025-09-25T13:46:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=98476"},"modified":"2025-09-25T13:46:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-25T13:46:08","slug":"steelers-rodgers-gamble-backfires-breakout-qb-poised-to-shatter-his-legacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=98476","title":{"rendered":"Steelers&#8217; Rodgers Gamble Backfires: Breakout QB Poised to Shatter His Legacy"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\" class=\"has-video wp-caption\">\n<figure class=\"h-responsive\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy-img\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2236613866.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" alt=\"\" width=\"360\" height=\"240\" \/><\/figure>\n<div class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"caption-credit\">Getty<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"featured-widget-area\">\n<div id=\"heavy_multi_stn_video_player_widget-10\" class=\"stn-player-cls stn-player-container\">\n<div data-stn-player=\"g2m7hup2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">It\u2019s rarely too early for an NFL mock draft. Despite the 2025 regular season being just a few weeks old, CBS Sports\u2019 Mike Renner has continued to turn out new mocks. On Wednesday, Renner predicted a new signal-caller in Dante Moore to land with the\u00a0Pittsburgh Steelers\u00a0during the first round.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Moore was the fourth quarterback off the board in Renner\u2019s latest mock. Renner projected the Steelers to select the Oregon signal-caller at No. 12 overall.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">\u201cMoore has been the breakout star at the quarterback position this season,\u201d\u00a0Renner wrote. \u201cAfter starting his career at UCLA, Moore sat behind Dillon Gabriel last year. In four games this season, his arm talent and athleticism are on full display. He\u2019s averaging over 10.0 yards per attempt so far.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_1_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-1 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_1\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">\u201cIf he continues to impress this weekend against Penn State, Moore could even soar higher than this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Based on the stat line, it\u2019s hard to disagree with Renner\u2019s assertion that Moore is a breakout star this season. In four games,\u00a0Moore has completed\u00a074.7% of his passes for 962 yards. Along with his 10.1 yards per pass average, he is posting 240.5 passing yards per game with 11 touchdowns and one interception.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Moore is also averaging 6.2 yards per carry.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Due to the breakout start to the 2025 season, Moore has made quite a leap on 2026 NFL draft rankings. On Renner\u2019s pre-season mock,\u00a0Moore was not\u00a0a first-round pick.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_2_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-2 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_2\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">In that mock draft released on August 27, Renner projected\u00a0the Steelers to select\u00a0Oklahoma\u2019s John Mateer. In his new mock draft, Mateer landed with the\u00a0New York Jets\u00a0at No. 7 overall.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Fernando Mendoza at No. 1 and Garrett Nussmeier at No. 4 were the other quarterbacks off the board ahead of Moore in Renner\u2019s new mock draft.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Could Steelers Select Oregon QB Dante Moore?<\/h2>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">While it\u2019s never too early for an NFL mock draft, it\u2019s difficult to make projections for the next draft this early for many reasons.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Obviously, it\u2019s not clear yet how high the Steelers will be selecting in the first round. There\u2019s also more than three-quarters of the 2025 campaign remaining. Every NFL team\u2019s needs can still change.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_3_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-3 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_3\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">But it\u2019s rather clear the Steelers are going to need to draft another quarterback next year.\u00a0Aaron Rodgers\u00a0only signed a one-year contract in June. Rodgers has also indicated he plans to retire after 2025.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">The Steelers could have a shot at one of the top signal-callers in the class if they finish below .500 for the first time under Mike Tomlin. Or, the team could use its plethora of draft picks to move up the board.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">It\u2019s not clear which scenario played out in Renner\u2019s mock draft. But regardless of how, the Steelers landed Moore in the mock.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Moore began\u00a0his college career at UCLA, where he received significant playing time as a freshman. But after 2023, he transferred to Oregon.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_4_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-4 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_4\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">With the Ducks, Moore didn\u2019t play much last season. But he\u2019s now stepped into the starter role and helped Oregon get off to a fast start.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">How Moore performs versus Penn State on Saturday could greatly influence Oregon\u2019s 2025 season and his draft stock next spring.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Projecting Steelers QB Depth Entering 2026 Offseason<\/h2>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Rodgers isn\u2019t 100% retiring after the 2025 season. He could change his mind and try to return to the Steelers for 2026. That\u2019s one of the unknown factors pundits have to project to put together mock drafts this early.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Barring a significant change, quarterbacks\u00a0Mason Rudolph\u00a0and\u00a0Will Howard\u00a0will be back in 2026. Neither one is predicted to be Pittsburgh\u2019s next franchise quarterback.<\/p>\n<div id=\"AdThrive_Content_5_desktop\" class=\"adthrive-ad adthrive-content adthrive-content-5 adthrive-ad-cls\" data-google-query-id=\"\">\n<div id=\"google_ads_iframe_\/18190176,25816858\/AdThrive_Content_5\/5ad7479721520f50ab7da88e_0__container__\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"google-ad-manager-fallback-container\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Rudolph could be a placeholder early in 2026. Whoever the Steelers add behind center next offseason may also have to compete with Howard.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">But if the Steelers select a quarterback in the first round, that rookie will be viewed as the team\u2019s future. Moore is likely to be on the list of possibilities if he continues to play well.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Getty It\u2019s rarely too early for an NFL mock draft. Despite the 2025 regular season being just a few weeks old, CBS Sports\u2019 Mike Renner has continued&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":98479,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-98476","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Steelers&#039; Rodgers Gamble Backfires: Breakout QB Poised to Shatter His Legacy - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=98476\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Steelers&#039; Rodgers Gamble Backfires: Breakout QB Poised to Shatter His Legacy - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Getty It\u2019s rarely too early for an NFL mock draft. 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