It looks like a recruiting effort from Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has come up short.
Former free-agent receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling ended up signing with the San Francisco 49ers after being released by Seattle earlier this week.
However, Valdes-Scantling insists Rodgers was trying to coax him into signing in Pittsburgh.
“He wanted me back over there,” Valdes-Scantling told The Athletic Thursday. The 30-year-old South Florida alum told writer Matt Barrows it was a “50-50” choice between the two teams for a while.
However, the eighth-year pass catcher claimed that he felt San Francisco was a better fit because he knows the offensive system. Valdes-Scantling spent half of last year playing under New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. His younger brother, Klay, has the same job with the 49ers.
“There’s a lot of carryover with the system, being able to come in right away and not have to learn a whole new system,” Valdes-Scantling explained.
Ironically, Valdes-Scantling followed Klint Kubiak from New Orleans to Seattle in the offseason after 17 receptions for 385 yards and four touchdowns in only eight games with the Saints last season.
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Yet he was let go when rosters were cut on Tuesday. Now he’ll open up against the Seahawks with the Niners in Week 1. Initially, Valdes-Scantling was signed to the practice squad, but a Week 1 activation is expected.
I believe this has to do with MVS's guaranteed contract. He'll likely be elevated from practice squad for Week 1 and eventually promoted to the active roster. https://t.co/qtVkKm16pO
— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) August 28, 2025
Valdes-Scantling spent his first four years in Green Bay with Rodgers, posting 13 touchdowns and 2,153 yards on 123 catches in that time.
The Steelers could definitely still use wide receiver help, especially a player with some size like Valdes-Scantling. He is 6-foot-4, 206 pounds. After DK Metcalf (6-foot-4, 229), the next three wide receivers on the Steelers depth chart — Calvin Austin, Roman Wilson and Scotty Miller — are all 5-foot-10 or shorter.
