The longer Aaron Rodgers waited to sign with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the more antsy fans felt. Being as old as Rodgers is, and joining so late in the offseason, some worried there wouldn’t be enough time for him to develop chemistry with the rest of his offense. Speaking on the Breakfast With Benz training camp podcast, Steelers’ QB coach Tom Arth was asked if he’s noticed a “lag” due to Rodgers waiting as long as he did.
“No, I don’t think so,” Arth said. “I think it’s just, as you go through this, it’s a process. And you’re building every single day, and you’re improving every single day. I think just everybody working together to get on the same page, is really what we’re trying to do.”
Rodgers waited until the week before mandatory minicamp to make his decision. He was there for those three days of minicamp. But that was the only time he spent with the team, in Pittsburgh, before camp. He did bring some members of the offense out to Malibu to train with him before training camp, so he was able to get some extra work in aside from just minicamp. In total, the only things he ended up missing were the two OTA sessions.
You can argue that Aaron Rodgers might not need this preparation time as much as others. He’s been in the league for two decades now, and there’s not really anything new he can do to prepare himself. Even Mike Tomlin has acknowledged that the Steelers are sometimes better off giving reps to younger players like Will Howard.
Physically, the argument might be a little more complicated. Rodgers is coming off a terrific end to the 2024 season, one that saw him start to look like himself again. But the reality is, he’s still 41 with a recent Achilles injury. Getting in shape is important, but the Steelers seem to be happy with the shape he’s in. They have to walk the fine line between getting Rodgers comfortable, but not wearing his body down too early in the year.
For Rodgers, it’s more about understanding the offense and developing chemistry. The physical aspect is important, but you don’t want to put that wear and tear on your body too early. According to Arth, who works with him every day, everything is going swimmingly.
