The Pittsburgh Steelers are 4-1, and their starting quarterback is feeling healthier as the season wears on. While the opposite is usually true, Aaron Rodgers told reporters Tuesday that he’s feeling more like himself, especially following the Steelers’ Week 5 bye week after he was “tighter” early in the season.
“I’m kind of going like this, body-wise,” Rodgers said, making an upward trajectory motion with his hand via video by The Pat McAfee Show’s Mark Kaboly on Twitter. “Great break on the bye week, spending time with my body work, guru guy out west, felt good coming back. Gonna have to get with him a few more times this season. First couple weeks, I was a little tighter I felt like, and I’m starting to loosen up and feel a little bit more like myself.”
After Week 1, Rodgers said his back was tight, which impacted his ability to move around. It’s clear that he felt that issue wasn’t just limited to the first week of the season, but with some work during the bye week, Rodgers is feeling looser.
Health and mobility are always a concern with a 41-year-old quarterback, and Rodgers took a lot of hits early in the season. But he looked good after the bye, and was even able to extend some plays. That included a key third-down conversion to Jaylen Warren on which he used his legs to evade pressure and dump it off for a first down. He also was able to escape the pocket to find Connor Heyward for a touchdown.
It’s obviously good news for the Steelers that Rodgers is feeling healthier. As he said, he’ll probably need more time with his body-work coach as the season goes on, the hits pile up and the general wear and tear of a long season sets in, but the fact that he’s feeling better now than he did to start the season is positive.
The Steelers will need to continue keeping Rodgers upright and not letting him get hit too much, but with the season underway, his body is responding well after a long layoff during the offseason. It’s not a surprise that he might not have felt as much like himself early in the season, but now that he’s getting back to feeling healthy, it can only mean good news for the Steelers as they continue to pursue an AFC North title.
