Aaron Rodgers Says Steelers Preseason Is ‘Not Real Football’ as McCarthy Debate Continues
Aaron Rodgers is 42 years old and does not want to play in preseason games. Mike McCarthy wants him to. That standoff is now the biggest story in Pittsburgh training camp.
Rodgers has called Steelers preseason games “not real football” and made it clear he does not think a starting quarterback with his mileage should be exposed to injury risk in exhibition games. McCarthy wants Rodgers to suit up for at least the first two preseason contests against the Packers and Jets, both former Rodgers teams.
The Steelers opened the preseason against Green Bay. They then host the Jets on August 21 before traveling to Buffalo on August 27. McCarthy has publicly said he would like Rodgers to play 30 or 40 snaps in the first two games. Rodgers publicly said if the coach asks, he will play. He also made it obvious he does not want to.
Who Is Right
Both of them, honestly. McCarthy needs to see the offense operate in real conditions with defenders playing full speed. That is nearly impossible to simulate in practice. Preseason snaps for a new offense can be really useful, even for veterans.
Rodgers is right that he does not need it. He has been playing this game for 21 years. He knows how to prepare. His timing with George Pickens and DK Metcalf will get sorted out in the first quarter of Week 1. Nothing about a preseason game meaningfully changes his readiness.
The risk-reward equation is what makes this interesting. If Rodgers goes down in a preseason game, the Steelers’ season is over before it starts. Kenny Pickett is the backup, and while he has NFL experience, this team is not built to compete for a Super Bowl with Pickett taking every snap.
The McCarthy Angle
McCarthy coached Rodgers for a decade in Green Bay. He knows exactly how Rodgers operates, what he needs, and how to push him. There is a version of this where McCarthy is playing the whole thing publicly to get Rodgers to voluntarily suit up. That is standard veteran quarterback dynamics.
There is also a version where McCarthy really does want the reps. The Steelers’ passing offense is going to be significantly different from what Pittsburgh has run in recent years. Getting the timing right early matters, even in an exhibition setting.
The compromise everyone expects is that Rodgers will play a series or two in one of the preseason games. Enough to show up on tape, not enough to expose him to real injury risk. That is what almost every veteran quarterback does.
The Steelers’ Bigger Picture
Pittsburgh built this whole season around Rodgers. The Metcalf trade, the offensive coordinator hire, the entire coaching staff structure. All of it depends on Rodgers being upright and playing his best football through January.
The AFC North is going to be competitive, but the Steelers are legitimately in the mix for the top seed. The defense is going to be excellent. The running game is set. The only question is whether Rodgers can still play at a level that lifts the ceiling.
His preseason participation is a small chapter of that story. But it is symbolic of the broader tension between what McCarthy wants his team to do and what Rodgers thinks his team should be doing. This kind of pushback happens all the time between coaches and star quarterbacks. Most of it stays private. This one is very public.
How It Ends
Rodgers plays a few snaps in one preseason game, McCarthy declares himself satisfied, and everybody moves on to Week 1. That is the smart money outcome. The alternative, where Rodgers refuses to play at all and creates a bigger public rift with his coach, is not helpful to anyone.
Steelers fans do not care about the details. They want to see Rodgers healthy in September. Both McCarthy and Rodgers want that too. The disagreement is about the path, not the destination.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
