The Pittsburgh Steelers were willing to wait on QB Aaron Rodgers this offseason. He didn’t sign with the team until just before mandatory minicamp despite visiting the team early in free agency. It was a long time to wait for the most important position in football. And it was a long time to wait for a 41-year-old quarterback.
So, was Aaron Rodgers worth the wait?
“He certainly has been,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday during his weekly press conference, per video from the Steelers’ YouTube channel. “And not only in terms of his play, but in terms of his relationship with the game, how he interacts with his teammates, how he loves the preparation process. All of those things have been double thumbs up. So, it’s reasonable to expect the in-stadium experience to mirror that. Just watching him day to day, there’s not a high level of concern in terms of the outcome being what he and we desire.”
Rodgers certainly impressed a lot of people in his Steelers debut in Week 1. In a much-anticipated matchup against the New York Jets, Rodgers completed over 73 percent of his passes and threw four touchdown passes in the wild 34-32 win over the team that cut him.
Unfortunately, Rodgers’ has production tailed off. He only completed 54.5 percent of his passes with one touchdown versus two interceptions in a Week 2 loss to the Seattle Seahawks. And on Sunday, Rodgers had his lowest yardage output (139 yards) against the New England Patriots. However, he did rebound in completion rate at 69.6 percent. He also threw for two touchdowns, including the game-winner to WR Calvin Austin III.
But as Tomlin said, it’s more than just what happens during games. It’s how Rodgers is practicing, modeling things for the younger players, and serving as a leader in the locker room. All you have to look at is how he’s speaking of his fellow teammates. He praised the offensive linemen for the way they rebounded after the game on Sunday.
Rodgers is also taking responsibility for when things go wrong. He acknowledged that he caused some of the sacks in Week 2 when he praised the offensive line. He also took full responsibility for his interception against the Patriots.
The Steelers are not off to some glorious statistical offensive start. But Aaron Rodgers has led the Steelers on two game-winning drives in the first three weeks. He’s saying all the right things. And according to Tomlin, Rodgers is doing all the right things during the week. That’s a good thing in a situation that a lot of people had reservations about.
