PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers knew what they were doing when they signed Aaron Rodgers to a one year deal for the coming season.
Despite being a future Pro Football Hall Of Famer, Rodgers has never been one to shy away from the media or controversy, constantly keeping his name in the headlines regardless of whether it took place on or off the field. His four Most Valuable Player awards have been balanced out by media antics and contract confusions int he past, and now Rodgers enters a turning point season in Pittsburgh.
Therefore, Rodgers has caught his fair share of irk during his career. The newest such criticism came from a quite unlikely source.
While we often don't hear from the NFLPA or its executives save for contract and collective bargaining disputes, a new book by former NFLPA executive DeMaurice Smith features shots at many NFL personalities. In the tell-all book set to release in August, it seems that Smith does not hold back, and included Rodgers in part of his criticism of the league that is spread through the book.
Smith paints Rodgers as one with a behavior unfitting of an NFL player, especially a leader in the positions that he has been in throughout his career. Smith talks about a time where he was in Green Bay, and remarked on Rodgers behavior in the locker room.
“He sat in the back row of the meeting room, issuing loud sighs before standing for a dramatic exit. An incredible quarterback, to be sure, but an even more impressive antagonist," Smith wrote.
Penn Live's Nick Farabaugh calls the Rodgers deal a bet in his analysis on the Smith quote, believing that the Steelers have taken a gamble on the player with the hopes that his antics and his play can balance out for the coming year.
Only time will tell whether or not the Steelers made the right decision bringing Rodgers to Pittsburgh, but that will all be much clearer when the regular season rolls around.
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