Pittsburgh Steelers play it safe and go against the wishes of QB Aaron Rodgers minutes before kickoff against the Chicago Bears
The Steelers are playing it safe on Sunday.
While “Spitgate” was the dilemma that had the Pittsburgh Steelers in national headlines this week, the bigger, or at least more impactful story, was the health of Aaron Rodgers. After suffering a broken bone in his left wrist, the soon to be 42 year old didn’t return for the second half of the Bengals game, and he missed practice early on in the week.
But then came Rodgers’ return on Thursday and Friday. Only, he never practiced at full capacity and was listed as questionable leading up to kickoff.
So, Rodgers was going to be a true game-time decision, and it came down to the very last minute.
Aaron Rodgers out against Bears
“He’s not going to play today. He fought his tail off all week, but that’s the prudent play as a collective. So he won’t be playing this week. We’ll let Mason start,” Mike Tomlin told Evan Washburn of NFL on CBS before the game.
An old school gunslinger that plays football with a “throw some dirt on it mentality,” even if it was a broken bone in Rodgers’ right wrist, I’d be willing to bet that Rodgers would try and give it a go. He returned to practice later in the week, and if it were up to him, he would have been back in the game on Sunday against the Bengals.
This is the Steelers being cautious, knowing they still have over a month left in the season and not wanting to risk short-term gain for long-term stability. A capable veteran, Mason Rudolph, will be back in the saddle on Sunday.
As for the defensive side of the ball, No Alex Highsmith hurts against one of the league’s better offenses, but Cam Heyward avoiding a major scare and playing in the game is a boost. The last time he was seen, he was in a walking boot and was listed as questionable before having his designation lifted on Saturday afternoon.
Darius Slay being back in the lineup can’t hurt, unless he’s taking reps away from James Pierre, who has been stellar in his absence. Tomlin alluded to that kind of rep distribution earlier in the week when asked about Slay.
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