While the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Aaron Rodgers to be their starting quarterback, they did not suit him up for the preseason. They’ll wait until the regular season for Rodgers to get his first game work with the team. It’s debatable whether that’s right or wrong. Former Steelers linebacker Chad Brown doesn’t agree with the decision, though.
“This one is really odd for me,” Brown said Thursday on the Freddie and Harry show on ESPN radio. “There’s a reason why the Steelers have not had a starting quarterback in over 20 years who hasn’t played in the preseason. That’s not the Steeler way of doing things. Mike Tomlin runs a very physical training camp.
“They do live tackling during training camp, one of the few teams that still do that. So, this move doesn’t fit in with that. I am also starting to feel a little bit of this, maybe the Steelers can do something this year. I’m buying into a little bit of the hype, but this move gives me a little bit of pause right now.”
Brown is correct that Tomlin puts an emphasis on physicality. That’s been a hallmark of the Steelers’ way of doing things for years. Therefore, it’s a little odd that he didn’t at least give Rodgers one drive in the preseason, especially considering how new he is to the team.
However, you could also argue that the physical nature of those practices should better prepare Rodgers for the regular season. Also, the Steelers held a joint practice with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While none of that compares to in-game action, do the Steelers really want to risk Rodgers adding bumps and bruises to his body before the regular season starts?
At 41 years old, Rodgers’ body has a lot of mileage on it. He played in every game last year, but he still dealt with injuries that hurt his game. It would have been nice for all of the Steelers’ starters to get some work before the real bullets start flying. However, it isn’t outlandish that they chose to sit Rodgers.
Just as well, Rodgers doesn’t see much value in the preseason. He was open to playing, but it sounded like he’d be just fine waiting for the regular season to suit up. He also said that he sees more value in joint practices compared to the preseason.
It wasn’t just Rodgers who did not play in the preseason either. DK Metcalf is also new to the team, and Tomlin did not play him either. The team is taking a slightly different approach this year.
That isn’t too surprising. The Steelers have made a lot of uncharacteristic moves this offseason. For the past few years, it’s felt like they’ve been stuck in a rut. Perhaps doing things slightly different will help them produce better results. Only time will tell.
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