THE STEELERS’ JAYLEN WARREN HAD A BIG DAY AGAINST THE NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS. THE STEELERS WON, 21-14, SEPT. 21. (PHOTO BY MARLON MARTIN)
The Pittsburgh Steelers visited Gillette Stadium on September 21, 2025, to take on the New England Patriots. The performance of the Steelers during the recent past has been less than solid and, the Patriots had no need to spend sleepless nights worrying about the matchup.
“We’re gonna to have to handle the front. We know where they’re gonna be most of the time,” Mike Vrabel, head coach of the Patriots, said before the game.
Coach Vrabel, if that were true, why was the Steelers defense in the perfect position to cause five turnovers?
That statement seemed less like an indicator of fear from the Pats and more like a welcome mat being laid down along with New England rubbing their hands together while drooling at the mouth saying: “Yeah, so what the Steelers are coming and we can’t wait for them to get here.”
The Steelers barely squeaked out a win, 21-14. Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers again performed less like a future NFL Hall-of-Famer.
Mike Phillips recently posted a story on fansided.com that gives credence and support to my viewpoint. Phillips writes: “Aaron Rodgers hasn’t changed much for the Pittsburgh Steelers.” An excerpt from his column points out that: “The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t looked spectacular in the early going, but they are doing what Mike Tomlin’s Steelers usually do, win slightly more than they lose. Sunday’s 21-14 win over New England allowed the Steelers to improve to 2-1 over their first three games, but the teams they’ve beaten (the Patriots and the 0-3 New York Jets) won’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of NFL fans.”
Mr. Phillips also correctly pointed out that: “There is also a bit of deceptiveness with Rodgers’ strong start, as taking out the Jets game means he has thrown three touchdowns and three interceptions in his last two starts. The overall numbers look solid, but a closer look at the game tape shows Rodgers having a tough time dealing with pressure and making some bad decisions with the football that he will pay for against stronger opponents.”
This is not a theory, just take a look at the tape!
Although the defense of the Steelers handed Aaron Rodgers a gift horse of 5 turnovers, 4 fumbles and a pick, instead of capitalizing on his good fortune, Rodgers made the decision just to look the gift horse squarely in the mouth. Now came Arthur Smith’s turn to perform his dental exam of the “equine of convenience.”
I am convinced that Arthur Smith, the offensive coordinator of the Steelers and Aaron Rodgers, the Hall of Fame, sometimes the hall of shame quarterback, are the Siamese Twins of incompetency. They are joined at the lips instead of at the hip. There were occasions that the Patriots defense placed seven men in the box but Arthur Smith continued to ignore the numbers and called plays that sent running backs scampering like rodents in the dark, squarely into the teeth of the defense. When that strategy tanked, he called plays attempting worthless two and three-yard possession-killing passes around and almost behind the line of scrimmage. The offense seemed to live in the land of perdition, forced by stagnation and repetition. For all of the being said about the Steelers O-line, Aaron Rodgers was not sacked once.
Also, remember when the Steelers outdueled, sorry, I meant outlasted, the hapless New York Jets in the season opener, unrealistic predictions about the gold-laced immediate future of “savior” Aaron Rodgers leading the Steelers to the promised land were spewing forth like six-month-old wine being served at a Kindergartener’s tea party. In other words, it is an easier task to get a naïve fan base inebriated with promise, rather than success. In the world of spin, it will almost always be easier to sell a dream to children as opposed to aware and informed grown folks. The future will soon reveal if Aaron Rodgers will be the solution to the Steelers offensive woes. Or will he become the bigger problem?
The opponent to the Steelers’ success appears to be “the probability of change.” When former Steelers wide receiver George Pickens was experiencing a few “personality differences” with a few players and a coach or two, it was said by more than one person that Pickens was a reservoir of trouble and it would be wise to sever his association with the team. Why? If, for no other reason, it would be to preserve unity in the locker room and to eliminate future chaos. However, during that feeble and biased attempt to analyze the social atmosphere of the Steelers, they failed to acknowledge the caboose that Aaron Rodgers attached to the Steelers train was filled to the brim with his luggage.
Andrew Vasquez posted a story on steelerswire.com after the Steelers victory against the Pats. “After the Steelers’ 21-14 win over the Patriots, Rodgers was asked about the 509th touchdown pass that moved him past Brett Favre on the all-time list—but the 41-year-old quarterback admitted the milestone doesn’t mean as much when asked where it ranks in his career. ‘I mean, not super duper high,’ Rodgers said. ‘It means I played a long time.'”
If you believe that, I will bet you my mama’s last bucket of Thanksgiving Day chitlins, that if you hook Aaron Rodgers up to a polygraph machine and ask that same question, it will be revealed that Rodgers was counting the days before he surpassed Brett Favre on the NFL touchdown passes list.
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