Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers was off in Sunday night’s 25-10 loss to the Chargers.
The 41-year-old quarterback looked uncomfortable from the get-go, as Pittsburgh started its first two possessions at the Steelers’ 40 and the Chargers’ 46 but could net only three points.
He ended the contest 16-of-31 for 161 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. But early on in the fourth quarter, he was just 9-of-21 passing for 91 yards.
How does Rodgers explain what happened?
“A lot of stuff wasn’t working,” Rodgers said postgame. “We were bad on third down. I was just a little bit off — missed DK [Metcalf] early, could’ve been a big play. Little high to Jonnu [Smith]. But yeah, we didn’t run the ball super effectively in the first half. I missed, obviously, some throws, for sure. And then we weren’t getting guys open and couldn’t put it all together. Times guys were open, I missed the throws that I usually make.
“Our defense played really well tonight. Offensively, we were pretty bad. So, we’ve got to find a way to get open on third down, I’ve got to find a way to hit ‘em, because that was just some bad ball.”
Through the season’s first eight games, Rodgers had been plenty effective, completing 69 percent of his passes for 1,692 yards with 17 touchdowns and five interceptions. Even as Rodgers is a few weeks away from turning 42, he noted that his body is feeling good.
This performance just happened to be one of those games.
“I expect to play great every single week, and this was not my best performance,” Rodgers said. “I’ve got to play better than this for us to win. Whatever it takes. If it’s better checks, if it’s better throws, I’ve got to play better. I will, but we’ve got to bounce back.
“We’ve got to play better on offense, for sure, but this is part of the season. There’s ebbs and flows, there’s ups and downs. And we can’t ride the wave. It felt like our energy — and it starts with me — wasn’t as great on offense. I felt like were were just kind of struggling a little bit and couldn’t get a play and get going. … We had so many three-and-outs and we hurt ourselves with a couple of penalties, and I didn’t play very good at all.”
If there is a silver lining, though, Pittsburgh is still in first place in the AFC North — which is exactly what Rodgers cited when asked how the team can move forward.
“We’re 5-4, we’re leading the division,” he said.
Rodgers and the Steelers will have to bounce back against the Bengals at home next Sunday afternoon.
