The Pittsburgh Steelers have a new quarterback this season in four-time MVP winner Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers is coming off two frustrating seasons with the Jets, and some of his new teammates made some rather disparaging comments about the future Hall of Famer.
These teammates include safety DeShon Elliott, who said that they should “leave his ass in the retirement home.” Elliott cleared the air shortly after Rodgers initially signed with the team.
“I’m a troll. He’s an All-Pro and he’s a GOAT. He’s going to be a gold jacket guy one day. Honestly, when he got here, we communicated, we talked, he’s a great person and a great football player, so whoever the media’s put out there is B.S.,” he said.
“I respect him a lot. I told him that I respect him, and I apologized to him for the things I was saying about him. Honestly, he’s a great man and he has a great heart, so I appreciate him and he’s funny as hell.”
Now, Rodgers is addressing things himself with regard to what was said about him in the past.
“Well, I think there’s a great quote in a TV show that I enjoyed called Ted Lasso. Ted talks about one of his favorite quotes: be curious, not judgmental. And I think that’s kind of how I wanted to approach this season and anybody that said anything, I try and put myself in their shoes as much as possible.
“And I respect the hell outta you and what you’ve accomplished in the game and your leadership from afar, it seems like you’re the type of leader that I’d wanna play with. So when you said that I didn’t take offense to that at all.”
Fans reacted to Rodgers’ words on social media.
“This is reason #1 I didn’t want them to sign Rodgers. All the news and attention is about him. Report on the dumbest stuff because it AR,” one fan wrote on Twitter.
“I really think he could have a good year if we get another receiver,” one fan added.
It’ll be interesting to see if Rodgers’ mature approach pays dividends for the Steelers this season.
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.