TE Jonnu Smith is the newest tight end in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ locker room. But he certainly has experience, eight seasons of NFL experience to be exact. That means he’s been around the block a few times. However, he hasn’t played with a quarterback with Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers’ talent before.
And Smith is certainly looking forward to the experience.
“I remember watching A-Rod when I was in middle school, I think, or high school, you know what I mean?” Smith said to the media after the first practice of training camp Thursday per video from Steelers.com. “Early years in high school and him winning Super Bowls. This guy has seen everything there is to see. And I’m going to continue to pick his brain, continue to build that chemistry with him. Like I said before, I’m excited that he’s the guy out here leading us.”
A veteran entering his ninth year, Smith remembers being in high school and watching his current starting quarterback play. That’s not exactly the norm, but then again, the Steelers haven’t exactly been operating as normal this offseason.
But Smith’s comments highlight the oddity of this upcoming season. The Pittsburgh Steelers are depending on a 41-year-old quarterback to lead them to playoff success. On one hand, that’s risky because who knows how long Aaron Rodgers can stay healthy? That’s one of Dan Orlovsky’s three keys to the Steelers being a good football team.
On the other hand, as Jonnu Smith said, Rodgers’ experience is invaluable to younger players. He’s won a Super Bowl and won multiple MVPs. He has a lot of knowledge to impart to other players, even veterans like Smith. And Smith plans on soaking all that knowledge up while working hard to get on the same page as Rodgers. If Smith wants to replicate any of the success he had with the Miami Dolphins last year, he’ll need to build quite the rapport with Rodgers.
But will Aaron Rodgers be as effective a football player as he can be a repository of knowledge? Smith thinks so.
“The arm still works, man,” Smith said when asked if he was concerned about Rodgers being in the twilight of his career. “And you know the IQ has always been at an elite level. We just gotta do our end and do our part, do our job, and make it easier on him. I still see when I watched his film from last year, I’ve seen Aaron Rodgers that I’ve been seeing my whole life.”
The Steelers are certainly banking on Rodgers playing at the level he showed toward the end of last year with the New York Jets. Sure, they’d love a return to his MVP days. But the plan is that the Steelers can rely on their defense and running game to take the pressure off Rodgers. They don’t want him to have to throw the ball all over Pittsburgh and beyond to win football games. They just want him to make the necessary plays when it’s time.
It sounds like Jonnu Smith has all the faith that Aaron Rodgers can do just that with the same talent as before. It would be quite the ride off into the sunset, leading the Steelers to a successful 2025. Unless 2025 isn’t Rodgers’ final year, of course.
