This offseason has been anything but peaceful for the Pittsburgh Steelers. From the signing of Aaron Rodgers to T.J. Watt’s benchmark contract extension, everything has been a struggle for the franchise, which is searching for its first playoff win in almost a decade.
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Now that everyone is signed and ready to go into training camp, the club’s former DB, Ryan Clark, believes the final product could be a “scary” one for the rest of the NFL.
Ever since Ben Roethlisberger retired in 2022, the belief has been that the Steelers were just a quarterback away from being contenders once again. Even though the “standard has lessened” for Pittsburgh, Rodgers is more than capable of guiding them towards the postseason, feels Clark.
“When you look at Aaron Rodgers… Last year, you saw him be able to protect himself, be able to move,” said Clark.
“He can still make every single throw, and now you’re playing on a team that has Jonnu Smith and Pat Freiermuth at the tight end position. You’re going to play 12 personnel with two tight ends… on a team that is going to be a top-tier defense,” he added.
Simply put, Rodgers just has to “do the job,” and the Steelers should have a more-than-legitimate chance of claiming their first playoff victory since January 8, 2017. “He only has to play football here; he doesn’t have to coach the team.”
However, despite them having seemingly found their man in Rodgers, oddsmakers don’t seem to be as confident in the Steelers’ roster. FanDuel has given the Steelers just the 16th-best Super Bowl odds. Even when it comes to making the playoffs in general, Pittsburgh is still listed as a betting underdog, currently sporting +140 odds.
As far as winning the AFC North goes, the bookies are currently offering you 5-to-1 odds, suggesting that there’s not a lot of confidence in the team. Former NFL executive and current analyst, Mike Tannebaum, suggests that the franchise may have bought a bit of fool’s gold with their investment in Rodgers.
In noting that Rodgers’ QBR has been one of the worst in the league in the past three seasons, the former general manager of the New York Jets believes that the Steelers fell for the shiny wrapping.
“It’s intoxicating. ‘We can get Aaron Rodgers, four-time MVP, Super Bowl champ, all-time great,’ and yes, could he catch lightning in a bottle? Absolutely, but… He hasn’t played well in three years, and in the history of our sport, two quarterbacks, at 42, have played a playoff game… The overwhelming data and history of our sport says it’s over,” said Tannebaum.
From the money line to the passing metrics, the odds just aren’t in favor of the Steelers finding success this year. Then again, if there was ever a quarterback who’s proven himself capable of defying the odds, it’s Aaron Rodgers, a future first-ballot Hall of Famer.
