If QB Aaron Rodgers doesn’t fit Arthur Smith’s philosophy, it appears nobody told the Steelers’ offensive coordinator that message. Granted, you’re not likely to hear many controversial takes from a coordinator about his quarterback, especially in training camp. To hear Smith talk about Rodgers, though, you’d never guess he was anything but genuine.
“It’s cool because we both have been in a lot of offenses”, Smith said of Rodgers, via Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “He’s been the perfect fit for what we want to do, with how we package things, without giving away too much info”.
According to offseason reports, Arthur Smith spent months building an offense around Aaron Rodgers, not even certain he would sign. It helps that Smith essentially confirmed that on his own, as well, after Rodgers signed. As we later learned, the two sides were in regular communication, though, so it’s not like they were oblivious.
And now that Smith has Rodgers on the field, it’s at a whole new level. “It’s impressive to watch him live”, Dulac quotes him as saying, “and it’s unique”. The veteran offensive coordinator added, “I’ve seen it on some of the down-the-field throws, the RPMs he has that thing, the way that ball spins, the pace he puts on those things. You’re talking 25- to 30-plus-yard throws to just the simple flats”.
Arthur Smith believes Aaron Rodgers still has an “unbelievable” release, both in quickness and velocity. Now 41 years old, Rodgers is certainly not at his peak, but he isn’t done yet. “Father Time gets us all”, Smith said, but “when he’s healthy, he moves around well. That’s what has been impressive”.
So far, Rodgers has been fine, in the assessment of our own Alex Kozora. Considering he never worked in team drills until the start of training camp, perhaps that’s not shocking. If he still looks just fine by the end of training camp, that might be a different story. Even amidst his fine-ness, he still delivers the occasional “Aaron Rodgers” magic throw, though.
The Steelers are attempting to climb off the quarterback carousel, though they know they’re not done with it yet. While Aaron Rodgers has vacillated on whether he will retire after 2025, Arthur Smith knows he won’t have him for long.
The idea, of course, is to make as good a run with the pieces they have now that they can manage. No doubt that’s why they didn’t offer Justin Fields more, and why they didn’t re-sign Russell Wilson. It seems Smith agreed that Rodgers could work or is at least worth a shot.
