He’s been Aaron Rodgers’ quarterbacks coach for just a few days so far in mandatory minicamp, but Tom Arth is already buying all of the hype regarding the future Hall of Famer.
At least, that’s what the Steelers QB coach said to FS1’s Chase Daniel via text, praising his arm talent, athleticism, release and intelligence.
During a segment on FS1’s “The Facility” Friday morning, Daniel stated he texted with Arth, whom he played under in Los Angeles, to get some information on Rodgers. According to Daniel, Arth is all-in on his new quarterback and believes he’s can still play at a high level.
“I texted with said quarterback coach Tom Arth. I forgot he was a quarterback coach there until a couple days ago. I was with him for two years in LA, and he’s buying the hype, to say the least. Like everything from on the field to off the field stuff,” Daniel said of his exchanges with Arth regarding Rodgers, according to video via FS1. “And I went on to ask him a little bit more like what stands out, all this stuff, right? He said Aaron Rodgers has four main gifts as a quarterback.
“He said arm talent, athleticism, his release and his intelligence. And I would agree that all four of those things have made Aaron Rogers one of the greatest of all time.”
Those four things that Arth shared with Daniel regarding Rodgers are what he highlighted earlier in the week about his new quarterback while speaking to reporters during the Steelers’ three-day mandatory minicamp at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex.
In that session, Arth compared Rodgers to Peyton Manning late in his career in the sense that Manning, whom Arth worked with, was able to win with his release and football smarts, even if some of his physical skills had diminished.
Arth spent time with the Green Bay Packers in 2006, so he is familiar with Rodgers. Rodgers knows all about Arth, too, even stating Arth still has the prettiest drop back he’s ever seen. Now in Pittsburgh, that arm talent, smarts, accuracy and even some athleticism are present with Rodgers.
His quick release and the arm strength drew quite a bit of attention during minicamp. He is showing he can still spin the ball and sling it, building off his final five games with the New York Jets in which he closed the season strong.
Rodgers also remains smart between the ears and can read the field well and process quickly after the snap. There’s not a coverage or a defense he hasn’t seen in his lengthy career.
The only real questions with Rodgers are his athleticism and his ability to maneuver in the pocket. Just under two years removed from a torn Achilles, those question linger, especially after Rodgers looked like he declined in both aspects last season with the Jets.
Guys like Daniel see that on tape, too.
“The only one of those four things that I’ve seen on film declining a little bit is athleticism. He’s not scrambling outside the pocket,” Daniel said of Rodgers. “But when you look at his arm talent, his release and his intelligence, I would agree this is one of the better quarterbacks — I think probably the best quarterback — that Pittsburgh has had. I don’t know if he’s going to play like that, but in shorts I think it’s worth buying the hype.”
Right now, the Steelers are in the honeymoon phase with Rodgers. He’s doing and saying all the right things. He’s jelling well with this new teammates and coaches. Things are very positive right now, and while it’s just football-like activities instead of actual football, there’s plenty of promise and excitement for the Steelers with Rodgers under center.
