Aaron Rodgers is returning for one last season with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The four-time NFL MVP has made it known that this will be his last dance as he plays his 22nd season in the league. Rodgers will enter his second year as the Steelers’ starting quarterback as he looks to end a decade long drought for the franchise when it comes to winning a playoff game.
The Steelers will have a new look this season after parting ways with Mike Tomlin, who had coached the franchise for the past 19 seasons. Pittsburgh brought in area native Mike McCarthy, who happens to be Rodgers’s former coach with the Green Bay Packers. McCarthy and Rodgers won a Super Bowl together in Green Bay during the 2010 season and worked together for 13 seasons (2006-2018).
Jerome Bettis, who is regarded as one of the greatest players in Steelers history, believes that Rodgers and McCarthy will work well together as they reunite for the first time in eight years. When asked what he believes Rodgers’ legacy will be once he calls it a career, the Pro Football Hall of Fame running back kept it simple and said that he’ll go down as “one of the greatest” quarterbacks to ever do it.
“It’s gonna be one of the greatest quarterbacks that has ever played the game,” said Bettis in a one-on-one interview. “He won a championship. He showed us what great quarterbacks look like. He’s a four-time MVP. His credentials speak for itself, and he’s one of the greatest quarterbacks to have ever played the game. I think he’ll go down as that and that’ll be his legacy.”
Aaron Rodgers Played in Most Stacked Generation of Quarterbacks in NFL History
Rodgers played in a stacked generation of quarterbacks, a generation that many would consider to be the greatest of all time. The 42-year-old quarterback entered the NFL (2005) and played out his prime against the likes of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees. Brady won seven Super Bowls (the most in NFL history), Manning won five MVPs (the most in history) and Brees set multiple passing records, including most consecutive games with a passing touchdown and most seasons as passing yards leader.
Rodgers started out his career later than his peers, not taking over the Packers’ starting job until his fourth season in 2008 due to the presence of legendary quarterback Brett Favre. However, he still ranks among the league leaders in passing yards (fifth), passing touchdowns (fourth) and passer rating (first). He also is the NFL’s career leader in touchdown-to-interception ratio. Furthermore, he also ranks second in league MVPs to Manning.
Jerome Bettis on a Successful Farewell Season for Rodgers: Winning a Super Bowl
Obviously, Rodgers only has one Super Bowl in comparison to Brady’s seven and Manning’s two. That’s also not factoring in other all-time great quarterbacks such as Steelers legend Terry Bradshaw (four) and Troy Aikman (three). In other words, the lack of championship hardware may affect his all-time standing when it comes to comparing him to other quarterbacks.
Winning a Super Bowl in his last season would obviously add to Rodgers’s legacy. Bettis didn’t hold back in his assessment of what constitutes a “successful” season for Pittsburgh.
“A successful season is winning a championship,” said Bettis. “That’s the goal every year. What does he measure as success? That part I don’t know. But when you play for an organization like the Pittsburgh Steelers, the goal is to win a championship. If you win the division, that’s always a nugget, because we play in the toughest division in football, so that’s always going to be a challenge in and of itself. There’s going to be small wins, but ultimately the goal is to win a championship.”
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