Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers had a long night at the office on Sunday night. It resulted in one of the poorest performances from his nine-game stint with the club. In a primetime matchup at Los Angeles against the Chargers, Rodgers faltered. He logged a completion rate of only 51.6% — the worst of his career over the past five seasons. Considering the Steelers lost that game 25-10, it puts a finer point on just how bad their offense was that day.
Rodgers never got on track, going 16 for 31 with only 161 yards passing. His struggles were evident from the outset, as he missed key opportunities, including an early third-down pass to Calvin Austin. Rodgers put forth a stronger display on the subsequent march. Sure, he connected well with receivers Darnell Washington and Pat Freiermuth, but his overall performance just didn’t cut it.
The quarterback’s day went from bad to worse after getting dropped three times on the afternoon. Khalil Mack compounded his misery by sacking him for a safety. On top of that, Rodgers was brutal on deep throws, going 0-of-5 on passes that went at least 15 yards in the air. His only touchdown came alongside two interceptions, one of which occurred late in the second quarter when he aimed for receiver DK Metcalf but instead threw high into the hands of Chargers rookie RJ Mickens.
Rodgers reflected on the offensive struggles following the game, stating, “We as an offensive collective were off today, and certainly, he’s a component of that.” He acknowledged his part in the disappointing result, admitting, “I got to play better than this for us to win. Whatever it takes … if it’s better checks, if it’s better throws, whatever it is, I got to play better. I will.”
As they broke down one of the defining fourth-down throws targeted to Metcalf in the end zone, Rodgers was disappointed with his choice of decisions. Instead, this puzzling play call resulted in a turnover on downs. “I probably should have thrown it the other side,” he said, highlighting how miscommunication and poor execution compounded the team’s challenges.
That loss was not simply an indictment of her individual talent, but cast doubt on the effectiveness of the offensive unit as a whole. Coach Mike Tomlin noted, “We as an offensive collective were off today,” pointing to a lack of cohesion that impacted their execution.
The Steelers will begin feeling mounting pressure to fix what ails them as they go through this season’s inevitable ebbs and flows. Rodgers emphasized the need for improvement moving forward, stating, “A lot of stuff wasn’t working… We stunk it up tonight.”
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