Almost 15 years ago, Aaron Rodgers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl. Now, he’s slated to be their starting quarterback this year. While Rodgers isn’t the same player he once was, he still looked decent last year. However, at 41 years old, there’s no telling if he’ll continue to regress. There are a lot of negative opinions surrounding the Steelers signing Rodgers. Former NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck believes Rodgers could make Pittsburgh dangerous, though.
“I think that this is a good fit,” Hasselbeck said Monday on FS1’s The Herd with Colin Cowherd. “Aaron Rodgers has the weapons. The quirkiness, it’s okay in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh is the kind of organization that can handle it. I think they’re gonna thrive from it. I think this is a good fit for a lot of reasons. Look out for this team, look out for this offense.”
Rodgers’ unique personality is one of the biggest issues some people have with him. It’s not for everyone, and that’s okay. However, it might be incorrect to suggest that could hurt the Steelers’ locker room. For the most part, Rodgers’ former teammates have nothing but good things to say about him.
Perhaps Rodgers has butted heads with coaches or front office members before, but the Steelers have great structure. Their consistency is one of their best qualities. For all his faults, Mike Tomlin commands a lot of respect from people in the NFL. That includes Rodgers.
Because of that, there should be more hope that Rodgers can fit in immediately with the Steelers. However, that doesn’t guarantee that he’ll play well this season. That has more to do with how he fits in Arthur Smith’s system.
There’s some concern that could be a problem, too. Rodgers doesn’t necessarily look like a great fit for Smith’s offense. However, Hasselbeck tried to dispel those worries, drawing on his time around Smith when both were with the Tennessee Titans.
“[Smith] is beloved, he is well-respected. He was on the defensive side of the ball as a coach when I started in Tennessee,” Hasselbeck said. “Then, he was on the offensive side. You’ve got to connect the dots on resumé as well. Arthur Smith was on staff and replaced Matt LaFleur in Tennessee when he got his first start as an offensive coordinator.
“The thing for a veteran quarterback, you don’t want to go in and learn some foreign language. He’s not gonna have to do that with Arthur Smith. Arthur Smith, although people think of him as, ‘Run the damn ball all the time, I’m not adaptable,’ I believe he’s very adaptable. At the same time, I think Aaron Rodgers needs to be adaptable to be a run-first quarterback.”
Hasselbeck is correct that Rodgers might not have too tough of a time learning Smith’s offense. From 2019 to 2022, Rodgers’ head coach was LaFleur, who coached with Smith with the Titans in 2018. While Smith and LaFleur were only together for that lone year, that thread could help Rodgers learn the Steelers’ offense.
Reports indicate that Rodgers and Smith have wasted no time working together. They’re likely trying to find a nice middle ground for what both like to do. Smith’s offense usually centers on the run game, while Rodgers has looked most comfortable operating out of shotgun, throwing the ball for the majority of games.
This season, the Steelers’ offense might be a combination of those concepts. However, like Hasselbeck says, Pittsburgh might be better off leaning on their run game. Asking Rodgers to carry a team at this point in his career might be a mistake.
The 2025 season could still go poorly for the Steelers. It’s really unclear at what level Rodgers can still operate. However, the Steelers believe that he’s got enough gas left in the tank to make them competitive. He has the potential to be their best quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger. For Pittsburgh, that reward seems to outweigh the risk that comes with Rodgers.
