Through two weeks of regular-season action, Aaron Rodgers hasn't been the Pittsburgh Steelers biggest problem. That's good news for Rodgers, who was hoping to make an early impression on a fanbase that hasn't benefitted from above-average QB play since Ben Roethlisberger retired. The bad news for Rodgers is that the Steelers have other issues – unpredictable ones, in fact – that are the primary reason they're sitting at 1-1 instead of 2-0. Heck, Pittsburgh's Week 1 win over the Jets was sketchy at best, with Justin Fields wrecking havoc on the Steelers defense.
The Steelers defense has arguably been the most disappointing unit in the NFL through two games. With the acquisitions of Jalen Ramsey, Darius Slay, first-round pick Derrick Harmon and some much-needed depth, the Steelers defense was expected to be among the best in the NFL this season. So far, they've instead been among the worst, sitting at 29th in points and yards allowed.
Rodgers signed with the Steelers in the first place because they were a veteran-led team that was a quarterback away. He also admires head coach Mike Tomlin. Thus far, Tomlin – whose background is on the defensive side of the ball – has let Rodgers down. In their last 10 games dating back to last season, Pittsburgh has allowed nearly 28 points per game. That's not going to cut it in what could be Rodgers final campaign.
Steelers defense has let Aaron Rodgers down so far this season
Rodgers will turn 42 years old in December. He is not longer the type of player who can overcome playing for team that gives up nearly 28 points per game on average. If anything, Rodgers relies more heavily on his defense than ever before, as well as the skill-position players in Pittsburgh's offense. So far this season, the Steelers defense and special teams have been anything but perfect – look no further than TJ Watt's overall lack of impact and rookie Kaleb Johnson's brutal misplay in Week 2 against the Seahawks.
Pittsburgh's defense has at least three future Hall of Famers prominently featured on it. While those players are all over 30, the likes of Watt, Cameron Heyward and Ramsey are just a season removed from making a real impact. However, Omar Khan and Tomlin are finding out the hard way that they can't build a defense as if they're playing Madden franchise mode. As talented as the depth chart looks, they need to build camaraderie over time.
Aaron Rodgers should've learned his lesson with the Packers
Even at his best, Rodgers best teams always relied on a solid defense. It's one thing they don't tell you about playing quarterback at the professional level. No matter how good Rodgers plays, he cannot defeat good teams, especially not in the postseason, without a defense that has his back. Rodgers has only won one Super Bowl, and lost in the conference title game on two separate occasions. Of those three teams, two ranked in the top-10 in total defense. Rodgers' 2010 Super Bowl team had the second-ranked defense in the NFL via points allowed, and fifth-best in yards allowed.
Of course, one could easily look at the Steelers defense and assume they would be of that caliber. However, if Rodgers was watching down the stretch and in the 2024-25 postseason, he should've known the Steelers' defense was one on the downswing. This team gave up 299 rushing yards and two touchdowns in their WIld Card round loss to the Ravens. They proceeded to keep defensive coordinator Teryl Austin even after that embarrassment.
Watt – the Steelers most impactful defensive player – doesn't have a single sack in his last six games dating back to last season. There were signs, and Rodgers chose to ignore them.