Rodgers says there's 'zero debate' 2026 will be his final season as Steelers open a new-look camp

(AP) — Aaron Rodgers says there's “zero debate" that this season will be his last.The future Hall of Fame quarterback's status beyond 2026 is seemingly one of the few certainties for the Pittsburgh Steelers, where the only thing familiar about their annual pilgrimage to Saint Vincent College for training camp might be the venue.Having a new head coach for the first time in a generation will do that.While native son Mike McCarthy's Pittsburgh roots run deep, he also brings a career full of experiences built coaching elsewhere to a franchise that has done certain things a certain way for a long, long time.Times are changing. Right from the jump.The quaint spectacle of players being swarmed by cameras and microphones as they lugged their bags and personal items into Rooney Hall is no more. Most of the roster arrived quietly late Monday.

Nearly all of them were on the field for a post-breakfast conditioning test on Tuesday, a glorified jog that was typically done in the late afternoon during former coach Mike Tomlin's 19-year run.No wonder linebacker T.J. Watt likened the beginning of his 10th year in the NFL to the first day of school.“There’s just a lot of unknown,” he said.The next three weeks in the western Pennsylvania hills are a feeling-out process of sorts for players and coaches alike. Watt insists he is embracing the new.Good thing, because there's plenty to go around.The afternoon practices in the midsummer heat that Tomlin leaned into, often clad in black sweatpants and a sweatshirt, will now be held earlier in the day.

Team meetings will start at 7:30 a.m., with all practices scheduled to wrap up by 1:30 p.m. at the latest, around the same time Tomlin's practices usually began.McCarthy said he'd be fine with practicing right after breakfast if he could. Well, that's mostly out, too.“You try to reduce risk," said McCarthy, who said the emphasis will be on trying to make sure players correctly do all the fundamental things required for good tackling form — like footwork — so they'll be ready when the games count.Still, McCarthy is well aware that trying to prevent all injuries is a fool's errand.

If he needed a reminder, he got one when veteran defensive back Jalen Ramsey tweaked a knee during minicamp, a setback that landed him on the physically unable to perform list, though McCarthy stressed the move was precautionary an…