As we do every week to get you ready for the upcoming game, we give you our X-factor of the week. Sometimes, it’s a player, unit, concept, or scheme. Here’s our Pittsburgh Steelers X-factor of the game against the Seattle Seahawks.
#### STEELERS VS SEAHAWKS X FACTOR: QB AARON RODGERS
Coming into Week 1, we knew the Steelers were going to need a good game from Aaron Rodgers to come away with a win. That said, few expected him to perform as well as he did. Rodgers completed over 70 percent of his attempts, while throwing for nearly 250 yards and four touchdowns.
The passing game was working, but few other things were. The offensive line was the biggest problem. From Broderick Jones to the rest of the line, they weren’t keeping Rodgers upright. They also weren’t opening any holes for the running backs, and the Steelers only ended up picking up 53 yards on the ground.
That’s why Aaron Rodgers is this week’s X factor, as basic as it may seem to award that to a quarterback. Right now, this offense is one-dimensional. At no point in training camp did the Steelers run the ball well. Aside from some fun Lew Nichols moments in the preseason, they didn’t run it consistently across those three games either. And they were stumped once again on Sunday.
The Steelers will likely need a big performance from Rodgers to win this game. That may be possible against [a depleted Seahawks’ secondary](https://steelersdepot.com/2025/09/seahawks-week-2-friday-injury-report-cb-devon-witherspoon-doubtful-secondary-depth-runs-thin/) this week. A rookie safety, Nick Emmanwori, will miss the game with an ankle injury. CB Devon Witherspoon is also doubtful, which would be a major loss for Seattle if he’s not able to suit up. The Steelers will hope DK Metcalf, Calvin Austin III and maybe even Roman Wilson can take advantage of that weakened unit.
When the Steelers signed Aaron Rodgers, they did not want to have to rely on him to win games. If he could step up and make the big throws, great, but if not, they hoped the defense and running game could pull through. Neither of those did so last Sunday. If the Steelers are going anywhere important this year, [those issues will eventually be fixed](https://steelersdepot.com/2025/09/juan-thornhill-outlines-biggest-issue-with-run-defense-we-got-those-things-fixed/). For now, they might have to rely on Rodgers to win them another game on Sunday afternoon.