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Enough Said: Ant's ejection, the Vikings' Sam Darnold situation and remembering Gene Hackman

Enough Said: Ant's ejection, the Vikings' Sam Darnold situation and remembering Gene Hackman

Yahoo01-03-2025

Enough Said hosts discuss Anthony Edwards' ejection that has led to a suspension, the Minnesota Vikings' Sam Darnold situation and remembering actor Gene Hackman who was found dead this week.

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It feels like we just watched Aaron Rodgers on a weird, man-on-the-streets version of a reality TV dating show, one in which our dapper dude begrudgingly committed to someone after a far more arduous saga than anyone ever imagined. Resigned to the belief that a third-best option was better than no option at all, our bachelor talked himself into awarding the rose to the only partner left standing. Together, they awkwardly begin their new union, ignoring the signs that suggest this won't end well. Advertisement That's basically what happened between Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday. Some 85 days after the revamping New York Jets released him, after the Minnesota Vikings pledged loyalty to second-year pro J.J. McCarthy, and after the New York Giants signed Jameis Winston and Russell Wilson in free agency and drafted Jaxson Dart for good measure, Rodgers is officially a Steeler. 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Advertisement So, Rodgers, who has seen every blitz package and coverage scheme known to man, will prove more proficient in directing a Steelers offense that this offseason swapped out wide receiver George Pickens for DK Metcalf and replaced running back Najee Harris with third-round pick Kaleb Johnson. But this is the same Rodgers who is coming off the most disappointing showing of his career after struggling to effectively direct a Jets offense that featured Pro Bowl-caliber wide receivers Davante Adams and Garrett Wilson and potent running back Breece Hall. Pittsburgh does have a consistently reliable defense. But will Rodgers fare much better with the Steelers, who have fielded pedestrian offenses for years? It's not like team officials made dramatic upgrades to that side of the ball. Metcalf, for whom the Steelers traded before awarding him a $132 million contract, may have Pickens beat in the maturity department. But statistically, the differences are negligible. And that raises the question of why, if Pittsburgh was so intent on this Rodgers fling, it didn't hang onto Pickens for one more season to ensure this over-the-hill legend at least had a dynamic receiver tandem with which to work. Just as Metcalf may not be a legit upgrade over Pickens, Rodgers might not be any better than Russell Wilson. Compare the aging former NFC rivals' last three seasons. The numbers are eerily similar. Rodgers completed 63.7 percent of his passes; Wilson 63.4 percent. Rodgers had 54 touchdown passes and 23 interceptions. Wilson had 58 touchdown passes and 24 interceptions. Rodgers went 14-21; Wilson 17-24. But an eight-year playoff win drought and a refusal to do what it takes to acquire a top-flight rookie quarterback and endure the development stages have clouded the Steelers' judgment. Did they forget that Father Time remains undefeated? Sure, Brady and Peyton Manning managed to deliver Super Bowls to new teams as the sun set on their careers. 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It will take work for Smith to align his conservative, run-first philosophies with those of Rodgers, who still views himself as a gunslinger. The two have never worked together. Smith worked under Matt LaFleur, Rodgers' head coach in Green Bay, when LaFleur was the offensive coordinator in Tennessee. And Steelers quarterbacks coach Tom Arth had a brief stint as an offseason teammate of Rodgers' in 2006. But there are no pre-existing ties to ensure this thing remains on track. Blending existing concepts with those of a veteran quarterback isn't easy. Just ask Bruce Arians and Byron Leftwich, who spent half of the 2020 season trying to do so for Brady before finding the perfect mix late in that season. And that was while working with the laser-focused Brady and not a quarterback like Rodgers with meandering interests and a strong sense of entitlement. Ideally, Smith would have had all offseason to cultivate a relationship with his quarterback and integrate his favorite concepts and plays into the Steelers' playbook. The two could have experimented, massaged and tweaked throughout the offseason. But instead, they will receive one three-day on-field stretch together before reconvening for training camp. Advertisement How will Rodgers respond if the offense sputters, should he and Smith clash? Will he eventually go rogue and get into on-field trouble while overestimating his declining physical gifts? And then there's chemistry with teammates. Unlike the Jets' experiment, Pittsburgh isn't going out to get as many hand-picked former Packers for Rodgers. Instead, he will have to start from scratch on Tuesday and continue throughout training camp. And even then, will it be enough? If he threw Jets teammates he'd known for nearly two years under the bus, what will he do to Pittsburgh players he hardly knows? Will Tomlin and Steelers owner Dan Rooney be able to stomach weekly outlandish comments from their quarterback on McAfee's show? Pittsburgh's desperation for a deep playoff run is real — so real it feels like the usually conservative Tomlin and Steelers were willing to ignore a dozen red flags, including that they were nowhere close to his first choice. But maybe things will not go as disastrously as they could. Maybe Rodgers will change his stripes and be the model teammate and ultimate professional — a big maybe. He doesn't make the Steelers better than the AFC North rival Baltimore Ravens. He might not even have the capability to carry Pittsburgh past Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals. We won't even talk about the Kansas City Chiefs. So, is this soul-selling dance worth it? There's no Super Bowl run left in this version of Aaron Rodgers. 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