Terry Bradshaw calls Steelers' Aaron Rodgers pursuit 'a joke'
"I liked Kenny Pickett," Bradshaw said of the Steelers' 2022 first-round pick, whom the team traded after two seasons. "When they got him to Pittsburgh, they didn't protect him, they didn't get him an offensive line. They wanted to run the football, but they didn't have an offensive line that could protect and they didn't have weapons. He had no wide receivers to speak of.
"Then they throw a kid in there for two years and you've got an offense that doesn't fit and doesn't work, and they can't run because their offensive line's not even good enough for a run blocking team. Now, they're saying Kenny Pickett is a failure. He wasn't a failure, the Steelers were a failure."
In 2024, after trading away Pickett, Pittsburgh relied on two veteran starters: former Bears first-rounder Justin Fields and Super Bowl 48 champion Russell Wilson. Both left for New York in free agency - Fields signed with the Jets; Wilson, with the Giants.
Pickett is now with his third team, the Cleveland Browns, after the Philadelphia Eagles traded him earlier this offseason. The former Pitt product holds a 15-10 career record as a starter with a career completion rate of 62.4%, 4,765 passing yards and 15 touchdowns to 14 interceptions.
Terry Bradshaw rips Steelers for Aaron Rodgers pursuit
Bradshaw's criticism didn't end at the team's past fiascos. Bradshaw also tackled Pittsburgh's current, months-long courtship of Rodgers, who is still a free agent, even as the Steelers began OTAs on Tuesday.
"That's a joke. That to me is just a joke," Bradshaw said. "What are you gonna do? Bring him in for one year, are you kidding me? That guy needs to stay in California. Go somewhere and chew on bark and whisper to the gods out there."
Team owner Art Rooney II recently told reporters multiple times that he and the team will wait "a little while longer" on Rodgers to make a decision.
In the meantime, the Steelers have three other quarterbacks on their roster: Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson, both of whom signed with the team this offseason, and Will Howard, Pittsburgh's 2025 NFL Draft sixth-round pick.
Rudolph has the most starting experience between the three (18 games) and played five seasons with the Steelers prior to joining the Tennessee Titans last year. He re-signed with Pittsburgh on a two-year, $8 million deal in March.
In 2024, Rodgers had a completion rate of 63% with 3,897 passing yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. New York let Rodgers know the team planned to go in a different direction in February before releasing him in March.
Time will tell whether the Steelers (or Rodgers) will heed Bradshaw's words or if they're destined for another year of regular-season success before an early playoff exit. Pittsburgh has made the playoffs in four of the last five seasons but has not won a postseason game since 2016.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Record
4 hours ago
- Daily Record
Ange casts a Celtic return shadow until Brendan Rodgers cracks a light on sticky contract situation
Ange Postecoglou told everyone he always delivers in the second season and was true to his word. He also promised Tottenham fans the third was going to be a blockbuster – only for his show to get cancelled. Football isn't a funny old game these days, it's a brutal one. Postecoglou getting the mallet soon after securing the first piece of silverware at Tottenham in 17 years just about sums it up. There's gratitude for you. An open top bus and then launched under it. The big Aussie might be better off out of there anyway and you'd think it won't be long before his phone rings again with some club chairman or owner somewhere fancying an adventure. And you just know there will be a fair few folk in these parts who will be hoping the call comes from the east end of Glasgow. It didn't take long for Celtic fans to join some of the dots. Brendan Rodgers is going into the final year of his contract and there's a suspicion the Irishman will decide the three year second stint is plenty. Hoops fans would be more than happy to let Ange lie on the beach for a year enjoying his Spurs pay-off before welcoming him back to Parkhead. It all sounds so seamless – but in reality even the suggestion would create instability. The longer Postecoglou sits out of work, the bigger shadow he'd cast over Parkhead. And this is the problem with Rodgers keeping his cards close to his chest too. The longer he stays silent on his future, the more folk will be second guessing. The second there's a goalless draw at Easter Road or, worse, a loss to Rangers, a section of the support will jerk the knees and jump on it and be talking about getting big Ange back sharpish. The whole managerial issue was always going to be a total distraction this coming season but it will be a whole level of awkwardness if the former gaffer is sitting idle. Rodgers said a few times he'll sit down with Dermot Desmond over the summer and see where they all are and what the plan is for next term and beyond. If the boss thinks this is his last dance, it might be better making it public and gearing up to going out with a bang. If he's undecided and wants to see how he feels down the line, it could create that uncertainty that can cause problems. It's a sticky one. Postecoglou himself could make it easier – and he could do Celtic and Rodgers a favour – by declaring he's not interested in making a return at any time, he wants to stay in England or try his luck on the continent. Taking himself off the board would be a slight boot in the delicates to punters but it would be a heck of a lot less hassle for his old club in the short term. Postecoglou will do what suits himself, mind you. That's how he rolls. He's been pretty ruthless with his career decisions over the years and you can bet an Aussie buck if he's won a trophy in his first season at Spurs and then Liverpool came calling post Klopp, he would have been at Anfield in a heartbeat. Quite right too. It's a two way street and survival of the fittest. Daniel Levy didn't show him any sentiment, despite the manager delivering the goods. Postecoglou gets the game too and has the ability to be cold and clinical. He raced out of Celtic when his big chance of a crack at the EPL came, but you can hardly blame him. It was a lifetime ambition to manage at that level and become the first Aussie to achieve it. Yet he's admitted there is still a connection with Celtic. It was Desmond who was the first European bigwig to take the punt and give him his chance, and set him on his way on this side of the planet. No one expected the Irish money man to be able to talk Rodgers into coming back, so anything is possible.
The Herald Scotland
6 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
As Aaron Rodgers joins Steelers, Justin Fields could elevate Jets
Naturally, reunion/revenge games - apply your label of choice - are typically fun, and the league did slot Rodgers' first matchup with his original team, the Green Bay Packers, into the "Sunday Night Football" window in Week 8. Yet nearly three years removed from his final appearance with the Pack, that contest could be more reunion adjacent. But the Jets? The team that summarily cut Rodgers, according to him, after he flew across the country for what turned out to be a very brief sit-down with new head coach Aaron Glenn in February? Not only will that Week 1 meeting be saturated in spice following the failed Rodgers experiment in New York, it will also provide the initial exit polling of who won what will wind up being a de facto trade of quarterbacks after the NYJ signed Justin Fields, Pittsburgh's opening day starter in 2024 and a player the Steelers tried to bring back this year, per reports. In words rarely uttered or written, I'm guessing that, in the aftermath of this veritable swap, the Jets come out looking like the better run organization than the Steelers. Admittedly, it's dangerous to draw conclusions from what occurs on NFL practices fields in May and June. However it's natural to glean impressions, and the ones Fields has been giving off in Florham Park, N.J., lately have been almost universally positive. "(H)e has this quiet confidence about himself. He leads by the way that he wants to lead, alright. His influence with the guys out there, I think you guys can see it. He can galvanize a group of men," Glenn said earlier this week when asked about Fields' progress. Galvanize a group of men. Rodgers certainly electrified the Jets' fan base upon his arrival via trade two years ago. But his 2023 season was infamously short-circuited after four plays by an Achilles tear. And there was definitely no galvanizing apparent amid a 5-12 campaign in 2024, one that incrementally saw former coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas swept aside before the rest of the staff and then Rodgers were pink slipped. And now? As he typically does regardless of circumstances, Rodgers proceeded on his own timeline this spring - though, in fairness, he recently revealed that some people close to him are battling cancer and made him reluctant to immediately jump back into football. As the Steelers stood by and waited, the most notable thing that occurred with their otherwise pedestrian group of quarterbacks was longtime backup Mason Rudolph's recent appearance at a Donald Trump rally in suburban Pittsburgh - one that forced the Steelers, whose Rooney family ownership has long leaned Democratic, to respond to enraged fans who were upset when Trump was presented with a team jersey. Meanwhile, Fields, who was largely impressive while leading Pittsburgh to a 4-2 start in 2024 before coach Mike Tomlin's decision - some would call it misguided, as I did then - to pivot to Russell Wilson, has been all business so far with the Jets. (Ironically enough, that's probably for the best given Fields' current boss, team owner Woody Johnson, was the American ambassador to the United Kingdom during Trump's first term.) But let's stick to football, right? Again, it's June. But Fields has looked spry this spring, something Rodgers hasn't really been since leaving Wisconsin. How quickly we forget this is a guy who rushed for more than 1,100 yards with the flawed 2022 Chicago Bears, who made Fields a first-round pick the year before ... and then did next to nothing to help him, usually a stratagem reserved for quarterbacks the Jets draft. Lately, Fields, 26, has been busy organizing team-building events with his new mates, several of whom initially deified four-time league MVP Rodgers but didn't necessarily connect with him on a personal level. Importantly, on that very front, Fields has resumed vibing with star wideout Garrett Wilson, whom he played with at Ohio State. (Also, it's fair to say Wilson, who's now open to a long-term extension and wants to be "a Jet for life," was quite clearly not galvanized by his former quarterback last season.) "(Wilson) has been my guy for a long time now, so I really feel like we haven't skipped a beat out on the practice field. It's been great so far just being with him," Fields said last week. "(W)hen I came here it's like we really didn't miss a day. He's been great." Whether the Jets will be great in 2025 or the near future remains to be seen. But Fields seems to be in the optimal spot. After getting benched for Russell Wilson, who initially soared then predictably sank the Steelers last season, Fields is now with a team that is showing him the love after showing him the money - even if two years and $40 million are bargain bin bucks as it pertains to NFL quarterbacks. But he's reunited with Garrett Wilson and working behind a heavily resourced offensive line, a luxury he's rarely had during his four NFL seasons, and seems to have a chance to fully leverage his dual threat ability and potential. "I think I can be great, and that's been the goal for me my whole life, my whole career," says Fields. "I think the sky's the limit for this team, for this offense. "I mean, we have all the guys we need, we have all the talent. So it's really just going to come down to discipline and execution when the games come." And the first one comes Sept. 7 at 1 p.m. ET, when the Steelers - and Rodgers - travel to the Meadowlands. "(I)f Aaron decides to play, it probably just makes many - if not all - the Steelers games a little more interesting," league scheduling czar Mike North said last month after the NFL released its 2025 docket, even as Rodgers remained in limbo. "We tried to play it down the middle. If we knew for certain that Aaron was going to be the quarterback of the Steelers, we might've done something a little different in Week 1 with the Steelers game." Still, when the topic is "different," there's no doubt the Jets and Steelers both look vastly altered in 2025 - and that seemed inevitable some time ago for Gang Green, spanked 37-15 in Pittsburgh last October and falling to 2-5, when Russell Wilson made his Steelers debut. Fields didn't play that night, and Rodgers was miserable (two interceptions). Forging ahead, it's hard to envision the Steelers, who clearly needed a quarterback, and Rodgers, who clearly needed a team, accomplishing much more than averting Tomlin's first losing season. It's reasonable to expect Rodgers, especially if he can remain healthy all season, to be a superior option to Wilson behind center - though it must be noted he has far less familiarity with the Steelers from schematic and personnel standpoints than he did with the Jets ... and, aside from private throwing sessions with DK Metcalf, that's hardly changed this spring. As for Fields? He now seems to have a longer and more promising runway - one the Steelers might have had by keeping him in the saddle last season and allowing him to potentially flourish into the franchise quarterback they haven't had since Ben Roethlisberger was at his peak. Yet how ironic would it be if Fields fills the same role for the long woebegone Jets, who have been effectively grounded since Hall of Famer Joe Namath was at his peak five decades ago? Not that Glenn wants to apply that kind of pressure. "Listen, obviously he's a talented player, and I'm happy that I have him as my quarterback," the rookie HC said of Fields, who presented numerous problems when he was with the Bears and Glenn was in charge of the NFC North rival Detroit Lions defense. "I really am," continued Glenn, "because I think the sky's the limit for this player, I really do. Listen, I'm not going to go out there and say that he's the next Joe Namath or anything like that. But I will tell you what, man, he's going to be a good player for us. And I'm excited with what he's going to do for us this season." And it absolutely could be significantly more than Rodgers manages in Western Pennsylvania, where buyer's remorse could set in quickly. All NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY's 4th and Monday newsletter.
Reuters
9 hours ago
- Reuters
Nick Gonzales' walk-off sac fly lifts Pirates past Phillies
June 7 - Nick Gonzales' sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth scored Adam Frazier and lifted the host Pittsburgh Pirates to a 5-4 comeback win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday night in a game that began late following a one-hour, 23-minute rain delay. Gonzales' walk-off RBI secured the Pirates their first win over Philadelphia this season. The Phillies played without Bryce Harper, who was not in the lineup due to a sore right wrist. The Pirates loaded the bases with no outs in the ninth on a single by Frazier, a bloop single to center by Jared Triolo and a perfectly executed bunt single by Isiah Kiner-Falefa that rolled up the third base line slowly and stopped. Phillies reliever Jordan Romano (0-3) struck out Oneil Cruz, but Gonzales lifted a fly ball that landed in the glove of Max Kepler on the warning track, allowing Frazier to walk home with the Pirates' second win in the past three games. Frazier led the Pirates at the plate with three hits while Bryan Reynolds and Henry Davis each had two hits, a home run and two RBIs. Trea Turner led the Phillies with three hits and two RBIs. The Pirates and Phillies matched each other to a 4-4 stalemate after four innings. Turner singled and then came around to score two batters later on a Nick Castellanos groundout to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead. Pittsburgh answered in the bottom half when Gonzales tripled and scored on an RBI single by Reynolds. Tied at 2 in the top of the fourth, Turner drove in two more runs on a single off reliever Chase Shugart, which scored J.T. Realmuto and Edmundo Sosa. Shugart had just relieved Pirates starter Bailey Falter, who matched his shortest outing of the season, pitching 3 2/3 innings. Falter allowed four runs on five hits and two walks and struck out two on 65 pitches. But the Pirates picked up their starter, scoring two in the bottom half of the fourth inning on Davis' two-run home run. Davis entered the game in the third inning after Endy Rodriguez left the game with right elbow discomfort. Pirates reliever David Bednar (1-4) struck out the side in the ninth to keep the game tied. --Field Level Media
