Listen up, NFL fans, because this is wild. Even with the Pittsburgh Steelers riding high on some impressive preseason performances from rookie quarterback Drew Allar and second-year Will Howard, people are actually talking about benching Aaron Rodgers! But longtime sports analyst Rich Eisen isn’t having any of it, shutting down the whole idea that these young guns are pushing the veteran 42-year-old starter to the sidelines this season.
“That’s Just Not Going to Happen!”
On his “Overreaction Monday” segment, Eisen went all in against the notion that Rodgers should be on a short leash, even if his play dips or those rookies look super ready. “That’s absurd. That’s just not going to happen,” Eisen declared. He basically said, are we really going to sacrifice Rodgers’ final season just to evaluate the future? Come on, that’s not how it works. He made it super clear: the Steelers are not benching Rodgers.
The Real Story: Mike McCarthy’s Blueprint for the Future
While Eisen was busy dismissing any in-season benching talk, he did highlight the massive upside from those strong preseason debuts by Allar and Howard. What does that mean? It totally validates Pittsburgh’s hiring of head coach Mike McCarthy. The guy’s a known quarterback whisperer, famous for developing signal-callers with both the Green Bay Packers and the Dallas Cowboys. He was brought in specifically to nail down stability at that position for the post-Rodgers era.
Eisen observed, “The answer does appear to be he knows what he’s doing with young quarterbacks. Like, they both looked like they had a clue.” That’s huge! McCarthy is the right man for a franchise that, after Rodgers, needs to stop churning through QBs to find the next Big Ben or even a solid bridge. With Pittsburgh usually picking outside the top draft slots, McCarthy coaching up guys like Allar and Howard gives them a clear plan for 2027 and beyond. For right now though, you know who’s running that offense? Rodgers. Period.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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