Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is undoubtedly a future Hall of Famer and one of the two or three greatest quarterbacks of the last 15 years. However, at age 41, it is up for debate whether he’s currently still a viable NFL signal-caller.
In Week 1 of this season, he almost looked like the Green Bay Packers version of himself by throwing for 244 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions in a 34-32 win over the New York Jets, the team he spent the previous two seasons with. But this past Sunday, he completed just 18 of his 33 pass attempts and had two interceptions against one touchdown pass as Pittsburgh lost by 14 points to the Seattle Seahawks.
Herm Edwards, the former NFL coach, was brutally honest during an ESPN “SportsCenter” segment about some tactical errors he saw Rodgers commit on Sunday.
“He was inconsistent, when you think about Aaron Rodgers,” Edwards said, per Athlon Sports. “He likes playing from the pocket, he felt pressured at times, was very not accurate in the sense that he was using his arms too much, didn’t plant his feet to throw, made a lot of awkward throws that he could generally make.
“He was sacked three times, got hit a bunch, and remember this he always feels like he’s gotta score points because of the Pittsburgh Steelers defense.”
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It’s hard to imagine anyone with any standing in the league levying that type of criticism at Rodgers during his 15-year tenure as the Packers’ starting quarterback. During that time, he seldom committed turnovers and consistently posted passer ratings north of 100.
But statistically, he started to show signs of slippage in 2022, his last year in Green Bay. During his first offensive series as a member of the Jets two years ago, he tore his Achilles, and last year, he saw-sawed back and forth between looking spry and looking washed up.
After the Jets missed the playoffs in their two seasons with Rodgers, some felt he should’ve retired this offseason. But perhaps he felt he needed to go out on more positive terms when he eventually signed with Pittsburgh.
One has to wonder how much his Achilles injury has contributed to at least one of the issues Edwards pointed out. Rodgers isn’t exactly as mobile as he used to be, and that is something that could lead to him not looking as confident as he used to be, not to mention his inability to avoid pressure.
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In two games, Rodgers has been sacked seven times. Granted, Pittsburgh’s offensive line is iffy, but that stat likely has more to do with Rodgers’ diminished physical capabilities than it does with the team’s lack of pass protection.
The four-time league MVP will have a chance to prove Edwards wrong when he leads the Steelers against the New England Patriots this Sunday. While the Patriots are rebuilding, head coach Mike Vrabel, a former defensive coordinator for the Houston Texans, could very well put together a successful game plan to corral Rodgers.