Aaron Rodgers played one of the most underwhelming games of his long and storied career on Sunday night as the Steelers failed to get anything going offensively in a 25-10 loss to the Chargers. The veteran quarterback managed to complete 16 of his 31 throws for 161 yards and oversaw a unit that couldn't get out of its way as Los Angeles built a commanding lead. After the final whistle, neither Rodgers nor his coach Mike Tomlin had much nice to say about the performance.
"This was not my best performance," Rodgers said. "I got to play better than this for us to win. Whatever it takes ... if it's better checks, if it's better throws, whatever it is, I got to play better. I will. ... We 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."
Aaron Rodgers speaks to the media. @Acrisure pic.twitter.com/GWnfeurEQa
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) November 10, 2025
Tomlin was a little more blunt with his assessment of Rodgers's play, opting to stare down a reporter who had the temerity to ask about it before deciding to focus on the offense as a full unit.
"We as an offensive collective were off today, and certainly, he's a component of that," Tomlin said of Rodgers. "I'll let him speak for himself, but we certainly got to be better. Didn't feel like they did anything unanticipated, but certainly, they outperformed us, particularly in possession-down play."
Both of these guys are grizzled veterans who long ago stopped trying to deny the reality of their missteps. Hearing plain talk instead of excuses or some sort of narrative-spinning that suggests the Steelers were anything but entirely overmatched against a team also fighting for the playoffs would be borderline insulting for fans.
Still, it's worth wondering just how real Pittsburgh's aspirations are this year and how capable Rodgers is of leading another deep run into January or even February. His 51.6% completion percentage was the worst of any he's turned in over the past five years and once again the Steelers' pass-catchers did not appear to be entirely on the same page as their quarterback.
Over the past four games, Rodgers has been outgunned by Joe Flacco, outshined by Jordan Love and flummoxed by Jim Harbaugh's defense. His one win over the stretch came last Sunday against the Colts thanks to the Steelers' defense forcing six turnovers.
At 5-4 Pittsburgh still sits atop the AFC North. Yet the Ravens appear to have fixed all their issues and are closing quickly in the rearview window.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Aaron Rodgers States the Obvious After Steelers' Anemic Offensive Showing .
