How the Steelers forged Aaron Rodgers-Mike Tomlin connection

pittsburgh–e.g. steelers Staff rushed to hand out AFC North Championship hats and T-shirts, and cameramen swarmed the field. aaron rodgers and Mike Tomlin found each other on the field at Acrizar Stadium.

Surrounded by boom mics and clicking cameras, Tomlin extended his hand Her quarterback, pulled her in for a hug and told her he loved her.

“Thanks for getting me here,” Rodgers told his head coach.

“Are you kidding me?” Tomlin replied. “Thank you for coming.”

It was an expression of the vision the 53-year-old Tomlin had when he pursued Rodgers 10 months ago, that the 42-year-old quarterback still has the knowledge, the arm, the swagger to lead the Steelers to the postseason. And with a vintage fourth-quarter performance — and, of course, with the help of a missed Baltimore Ravens Field goal — that’s exactly what Rodgers did.

Tomlin has been searching for the franchise’s next quarterback since Ben Roethlisberger’s 2022 retirement, sifting through the silt of the NFL Draft and free agency for that invaluable addition. However, every time the rays of hope proved foolish.

But in Rodgers, Tomlin found an unlikely kindred spirit, a quarterback who still had the desire to be great and the physical ability and aptitude to do so — at least for one more year. Thanks to that relationship, the Steelers recovered from a 6-6 midseason slump to reach the playoffs and host the National Football League (NFL). houston texans Monday night (8:20 ET, ESPN) Pittsburgh’s first home playoff game since the 2020 season.

“I think we have to connect,” Tomlin said Tuesday about the importance of the coach-quarterback relationship. “There’s a loneliness with leadership. There’s a responsibility with leadership. And so I’ve learned over the years to embrace that component of it, that we have to spend time together. We have to have an understanding.”

“…It’s been really fun because he has an appetite for it. He loves the process as much as he loves competing. He has an amazing relationship with football. He’s at the point in his career where he’s really reflective and excited about the game and giving back to young people in the game. And so it’s fun to do that with him.”

Rodgers is having fun too. He threw 24 touchdowns to seven interceptions and had his highest completion percentage (65.7%) since 2021. Success looked different for Rodgers this season as he averaged a career-low 5.9 air yards per attempt.

During Week 13, Rodgers completed only 7 of 28 attempts (25%) with two touchdowns and two interceptions on passes of at least 20 yards downfield. But his deep passing took off in the final four weeks of the season as he completed 9 of 20 attempts (45%) on such passes with three touchdowns.

As Rodgers moves forward, he’s motivated to win for his head coach, who is endeared to him in part because of their similar experiences.

“We love Mike T., and Mike T. has had an incredible career as a head coach, to last so long and never have a losing season. It’s unbelievable,” Rodgers said this week, dismissing outside criticism of the head coach that increased after the Week 13 loss to the Bills.

“There’s always something going on. When I was a young player, they said I couldn’t be considered special until I won a playoff game. After that, it was until you win a Super Bowl, and oh, you haven’t won the MVP yet. And whatever it is for Mike T, he’s not having 19 losing seasons in a row, so he’s got to find something to try and get after that.

“Mike T is probably the same as me, though, he doesn’t say much about any of the comments, but it’s good, we all love him and want to play for him. We want to win for him.”

Outside the building, there were concerns about Rodgers’ larger-than-life personality combined with Tomlin’s omnipresent standard-setting culture. But instead of a power struggle, there was symbiosis, two alphas united by a common goal of eliminating outside noise and creating an impossible race.

“It’s chaos, disbelief, gratitude, a lot of emotions,” Rodgers said Sunday night, describing the moment. tyler loop‘s field goal went right. “I’m really, really grateful. And that’s what I told [owner and president Art Rooney II] And [assistant general manager Andy Weidl] And [general manager Omar Khan]Just to be brought here and be able to be a part of this team, and the way I’ve bonded with the guys and the way they’ve put their arms around me and allowed me to be me and listened to me and let me lead and the way they’ve inspired me. It’s a good group of guys.”

During his nearly two decades at the helm of the Steelers, Tomlin has earned a reputation as a players’ coach for his transparency with the locker room and his willingness to let players be themselves. Although the latter did not always produce positive results, that trait was an important component of Rodgers’ decision to play in Pittsburgh.

Tomlin said, “I just think that if you want to get the best out of someone, especially someone in a leadership position, they have to do it in a natural way, in their own voice.” “When you’re asking them to be someone they’re not or not to do things in a real natural and organic way you’re cutting their leadership legs out from under them. And so I think it’s reckless to ask them to be something other than themselves.”

This has been the situation for Rodgers since arriving in Pittsburgh in June. Arriving just before mandatory minicamp, he not only signed a one-year, $13.65 million contract on his timeline, but he also brought his quirks with him – and the team accepted it.

Rodgers began the process of bonding with his pass catchers even before signing, working out with them. DK Metcalf In Los Angeles in late March. Once he became a Pittsburgh Steeler, Rodgers hosted a group of offensive players in Malibu, California for several days, taking them to dine at Nobu, shoot hoops in his exclusive gym with Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant and work out on a palm-tree-lined lawn.

Was one of the first to form a close relationship with the quarterback ben skowronekA wide receiver who is entering his second year with the team. The pair bonded over their penchant for wired headphones and glass-bottled Mountain Valley Spring Water, and at Nobu, Rodgers introduced her to affogato, a dessert made with espresso poured over vanilla gelato.

“He was like, you’ve got to try it, and I tried it,” Skowronek said. “Unbelievable. Then when I went back to Arizona to finish my offseason, I went out to dinner with my wife, and I was like, we have to try affogato. … We have a lot in common in lifestyle things.”

Back in Pittsburgh, Rodgers has hosted Tuesday film studies at his home. The meeting took place on December 2, Rodgers’ birthday. Skoroneck brought the cake.

Rodgers also made quick connections with others in the locker room. His colleagues soon discovered that Rodgers was as comfortable taking a joke as he was making one.

“He’s gotten older,” defensive captain Cameron Heyward said when asked in November what he’d learned about Rodgers. “I think he’s always been about the team and despite everything that’s been misunderstood on the outside, it’s been really fun getting to know him.

“Since he’s been here, he’s been bought in, but we joke around off the field. But we challenge each other and try to make sure we have the right pulse of the team, and I think it’s just about communicating and making sure we can move forward.”

Hayward was vocally skeptical about Rodgers before signing in Pittsburgh, saying on his podcast during Rodgers’ lengthy decision-making process, “You either want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler or you don’t.”

But after hugging his head coach Sunday night, Rodgers turned around to find Hayward waiting for him.

“Thank you,” Hayward said to Rodgers as the quarterback stepped over the defensive end to give the bear a hug.

In Rodgers, the Steelers found an experienced leader on offense who was able to thread the needle between being dependable and demanding, demanding but laid-back, and assertive but collaborative.

“He’s such a leader and such a commander,” Steelers left tackle dylan cook Said. “You never see him nervous, so it’s easy to play when your leader is relaxed all the time.”

Rodgers doesn’t solve the Steelers’ long-term quarterback puzzle. He may not be able to resolve it beyond next month, although the 42-year-old recently admitted that he has not yet made a decision on the 2026 season.

But he has done exactly what the Steelers needed — and expected — him to do this season. He stabilized the offense and kept the locker room balanced.

Already a three-point home underdog to the Texans, the Steelers’ trip could come to an end on Monday night. Or it could lead to Rodgers leading the fight.

“It’s a clean slate now,” Rodgers said. “Anyone can make a run. This is the hottest team. We’ve won four out of five. We’re playing much better football than we did earlier in the season. I like our chances.”