On Monday night, the Pittsburgh Steelers suffered a disappointing wild-card loss to the Houston Texans, which could have been Aaron Rodgers’ final game of his stellar NFL career.
The future Hall of Fame quarterback certainly didn’t have his best outing, throwing 17-of-33 completions for 146 yards and no touchdowns. Unfortunately, he was also sacked four times for a loss of 36 yards, and his final play may have been an embarrassing pick-six to help Houston gain momentum for their 30-6 win.
Before the season began, Rodgers indicated this would most likely be his final season in the NFL, but the Steelers also mentioned they’d be open to his return. Following the upsetting home loss in the NFL Playoffs, Rodgers spoke with the media about what went wrong, and also received questions about his future.
Adam Schefter Explains How Steelers Loss Could Impact Mike Tomlin’s Future
During his postgame press conference, Rodgers was upset at the outcome and also avoided giving any concrete answers about his future in Pittsburgh. However, several questions arose about his significant decision to return to play or officially retire.
“No, I mean I’m not gonna make any emotional decisions. Disappointed, obviously, such a fun year. A lot of adversity. Been a great year, overall, in my life in the last year, and this is a really big part of that, coming here and being part of this team. It’s disappointing to be sitting here with the season over,” he said.
Asked how he might make a decision, he said he would “Just get away and then have the right conversations.”
However, when a reporter asked if he entered the matchup with the Texans thinking it might be his last NFL game, Rodgers said, “I’ve answered this before. Every game could be my final game.”
Asked if he decided to exit the game in favor of Mason Rudolph getting to come in and play the final Steelers’ possession, Rodgers quickly responded.
“It was 30-6,” he said, before looking around for the next question.
Rodgers, 42, also indicated he was fortunate to have played in a great city, Green Bay, for 18 years of his career. He led the Packers to a Super Bowl win in 2011, ironically over Mike Tomlin’s Pittsburgh Steelers.
“This has been a really beautiful back end to that first 18, to be able to be here for a year. This is a special place. Got tradition, got excellence, got all-time greats,” he said, adding, “There’s only a few special places in the league that have the tradition and the town and the organization, and I’m thankful to have played for two of them.”
Much like Travis Kelce is expected to make a significant decision on his NFL future during his offseason, so is Aaron Rodgers. Both are future Hall of Famers with impressive resumes, and if it were their last seasons in the NFL, they certainly built remarkable legacies.
Stephen A Smith Warns Steelers About Aaron Rodgers for Texans Playoff Game
For more about the Pittsburgh Steelers and the NFL, visit Newsweek Sports.
Read the full article here
