The Pittsburgh Steelers are gearing up for a classic matchup against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday Night Football. These are two of the NFL's most storied franchises, but one storyline rises above the rest: the Aaron Rodgers revenge game.
Despite earning four MVPs, four First-Team All-Pro honors, and 10 Pro Bowls with the Packers, Green Bay—led by head coach Matt LeFleur—decided to move on from Rodgers after an 8-9 season in 2022.
Since then, all eyes have been on Rodgers getting his revenge. The 41-year-old quarterback already beat the New York Jets in Week 1 (the team that spurned him for the now-benched Justin Fields). Now, Rodgers would love nothing more than to complete his revenge tour against his former team and head coach who turned the page on him.
But Coach LaFleur isn't taking the bait.
The seven-year Packers head coach was asked about facing their former star quarterback this week, but LeFleur was quick to make it a matchup with the Steelers, not feed into the 'Rodgers revenge' storyline.
"We're playing the Pittsburgh Steelers, who happen to have Aaron Rodgers," LaFleur told reporters on Monday, per NFL.com. "It's as simple as that. That is for you guys to talk about.
"Granted, we've got a lot of respect and love for Aaron. What he's done here, I mean, he's a Hall of Famer. I know our past together, we had a lot of great moments, but this game is not about that. It's about going to Pittsburgh, Sunday Night Football, our guys will be jacked up, their guys will be jacked up. It's about the Green Bay Packers versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. That's for you guys to talk about, all those other storylines."
LeFleur further downplayed the matchup against Rodgers on SNF—claiming that many of his current players didn't even play with the long-time quarterback.
"I don't even know if many of these guys played with him," LaFleur said. "There's a few guys, but I think that's just—it's for you guys."
Aaron Rodgers will be out for revenge in the Pittsburgh Steelers' SNF game vs. the Green Bay Packers
If there's one thing we know about Rodgers, it's that he has an ego. This is a good thing when you're talking about a legendary quarterback. With a win over his former team on Sunday Night Football, Rodgers would join a short and elite list of quarterbacks who have beaten all 32 NFL teams. This includes just four names: Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady, and former teammate Brett Favre.
Earning this legendary milestone would be incentive enough for Rodgers to bring his 'A' game to the field with the nation watching on SNF. Still, sticking it to his former team and head coach might be even more reason to have a career game in Week 8.
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Rodgers is confident in his abilities, and he knows what the Packers gave up on. Though an unfortunate Achilles injury in 2023 proved to be a major setback late in his career, Rodgers is starting to look like himself again. Remarkably, he's on pace for nearly 40 touchdown passes after the first seven games of the season.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are still the underdogs in this one... and for obvious reasons. Though they are playing at home and will have a total of 10 days to prepare for this opponent, they are coming off a loss to Joe Flacco and the Bengals.
Meanwhile, the Green Bay Packers sit in first place in the NFC with a 4-1-1 record. The Steelers are getting a daunting task on Sunday Night Football, don't count out Aaron Rodgers in his revenge game—even if Matt LaFleur is downplaying this matchup.