In a late decision last Sunday, the Steelers opted to sit Aaron Rodgers against the Bears despite belief that he could start. The quarterback has been dealing with a fractured wrist suffered in a Week 11 win over the Bengals.
Heading into Week 13 against the Bills this Sunday, though, Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin is “optimistic” that Rodgers will be ready to go. But, it all depends how much the 41-year-old participates in practice this week.
“Aaron obviously worked his tail off to get to us last week,” Tomlin said on Tuesday. “We’ll start this week with great optimism, although we’ll certainly limit him in the early portions of the week, providing the quarterbacks opportunity while preserving him. I feel comfortable with the general trajectory, but I’ll keep you updated on his level of participation and quality of his participation over the course of the week will be the greatest indicator.”
This is a pretty promising update from Tomlin. Barring any setbacks, it sounds like Rodgers is on pace to start vs. the Bills.
Through 10 starts in his first season in Pittsburgh, Rodgers has completed 66.4% of his passes for 1,969 yards, 19 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
The 6–5 Steelers are in need of a huge win on Sunday in order to keep their playoff hopes alive. With the loss against the Bears, Pittsburgh fell into the hunt after holding on to the top AFC North spot all season thus far. The 6–5 Ravens now hold that position.
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