It Took Aaron Rodgers Just 2 Weeks To Call Out Steelers’ New Head Coach Mike McCarthy

This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

Aaron Rodgers spent Sunday looking like a quarterback in his last season, then took the podium with the headset still on his mind. The Steelers left Gillette Stadium with a 20-3 loss to the New England Patriots and almost nothing on the board. Pittsburgh is 1-1, and the reunion with Mike McCarthy already has an edge.

Rodgers finished 23 of 39 for 187 yards, no touchdowns and one interception. The line gave up four sacks, the run game stayed stuck, and Mason Rudolph closed it in garbage time. One touchdown in 25 possessions is not a slow start. It is a stalled offense.

Aaron Rodgers Put the Staff in the Quote

Rodgers owned the performance after the game.

“As players, we’ve got to take ownership,” Rodgers said, before the next line landed on the coaches. “My performance wasn’t good enough and a lot of guys on offense weren’t good enough.”

He added that the locker room has to start by looking at itself and not pointing fingers. Then he pointed anyway, just with better manners.

“The best teams are player-led teams,” he said. “We have to keep taking the ownership.”

Then, he sent a message to Mike McCarthy and the coaching staff.

“Mike knows what’s working, what’s not working, our coaches know,” he added. “So we can call stuff that we feel like has a better chance.”

McCarthy answered on his own.

“Defense played well enough to win the game,” he said. “Offense needs to be better. Mike McCarthy needs to be better.”

Why Aaron Rodgers’ Quotes Hit Different in Year 22

He did not dress up the tape.

“I have to go look at the film, but we just didn’t get into a rhythm,” Rodgers said. “We had too many three-and-outs again.”

“I don’t think there was anybody that really had an exceptional game out there. We all played below our standard.”

This was supposed to be the clean ending: one more year with the coach who once rode him in Green Bay. He got folded on a sack by Christian Elliss that turned a manageable down into a lost afternoon.

“There’s not any panic,” Rodgers said, with Rudolph already warming up.

He has called this his last season, which makes every quote feel heavier than the box score. Pittsburgh kept extra quarterbacks behind him for a reason.

“Can’t feel sorry for ourselves. Can’t point fingers,” he said. “We’ve all got to play better.”

The call sheet is now part of that “we.”