Watching the 2025 Pittsburgh Steelers feels a bit like deja vu. A new season has brought back familiar storylines, which is an obvious consequence of relying on future Hall of Fame quarterbacks who are aging out of the league. Russell Wilson faded down the stretch in 2024. Is Aaron Rodgers starting to do the same?
“How is it any different from what happened with Russell Wilson so far? It’s exactly the same,” Dave Dameshek said Friday via 102.5 WDVE’s Morning Show With Randy Baumann.
It’s a fair thing to wonder given Rodgers’ worst game of the season on Sunday Night Football against the Chargers. Until a garbage-time drive slightly salvaged his box-score statistics for the day, it was on track to be the worst game of his 21-year NFL career.
There was a clear turning point for Wilson last season. He had 572 passing yards and five touchdowns in Weeks 13 and 14 and then played a big role in the Steelers’ five-game losing streak to end the season. It was even summed up in one sentence by the Baltimore Ravens on Hard Knocks as they prepared to play Pittsburgh.
“It’s three pointers and layups. There’s no mid-range with this dude,” Ravens defensive assistant Noah Riley told the group.
That isn’t completely the case with Rodgers, but his passing game hasn’t exactly been dynamic lately either. Only two quarterbacks have a lower intended air yards per passing attempt than him this season. The dink-and-dunk passing game, which is really an extension of the running game, is being prioritized by opposing defenses. And as long as they shut down anything deep by doubling up DK Metcalf, the Steelers have been rendered ineffective.
Rodgers was efficient over the first several weeks of the season, but something changed over the last month. Look no further than Metcalf’s statistical drop-off. Metcalf has just 146 yards and a TD on 13 receptions over the last four games. If you want a depressing perspective on that, Ja’Marr Chase eclipsed that four-game total in just his last meeting against the Steelers.
There are still eight games left to prevent Groundhog Day in Pittsburgh, but another bad performance against the lowly Cincinnati Bengals defense would spell trouble for Rodgers and the offense. The rest of the schedule is unforgiving, and the Baltimore Ravens are hot on the Steelers’ heels in the AFC North — the exact same way it was a year ago.
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