Aaron Rodgers did not get much time to see Paris. Asked whether he expected to see any of the city, the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback answered: “Maybe if we’d gotten here on Monday.” The Steelers flew out on Thursday evening and landed on Friday morning, and Rodgers said he would have liked a different plan at least once. “I’ve played in three countries now, and each of them we’ve left on Thursday early evening, and it would have been nice one time to come over on a Monday,” he said.
He spoke at the team hotel on Friday after the club’s planned workout was called off, two days before the Steelers face the New Orleans Saints in the first NFL regular-season game in France. The Steelers posted the full news conference on their YouTube channel.
Rodgers on Jalen Hurts
Rodgers was asked about Jalen Hurts, the Philadelphia Eagles quarterback whose blood clots after the trip to London have led to calls for a review of his medical care. Rodgers said the two are not close, but “obviously, we’re in the quarterback fraternity, so you don’t want to see anything like that happen to anybody.” He said he did not know all the details, then added a pointed line about the league office. “The guy in charge of all things medical at the NFL office and I haven’t always seen eye-to-eye about things,” Rodgers said. “So I can’t say I’m real surprised.” He did not name anyone. Earlier in the week, Roger Goodell said the league’s protocols in the Hurts case were “incredibly good,” and that the NFL would “welcome” a review.
“Nice to also know this is the end”
Rodgers, who is 42 and the oldest player in the NFL, has said this is his final season. Asked what that means to him, he said: “Well, I’m old, you got that part.” He added: “There’s some pride in still going and still being able to play. But nice to also know this is the end.”
He said he does not feel very nostalgic as he plays his last games in some places. “Some places it’s nice I know I don’t ever have to go back to. Like Tampa,” he said, a few days after the Steelers won 26-19 at Raymond James Stadium. “I’ve gotten hurt on that field twice, so I’m not going to miss that.” His two favorite stadiums, he said, are Lambeau Field and Soldier Field.
He also explained why he keeps going. “I love it. It’s never felt like a job,” Rodgers said. “I get to throw a football and hang out with my buddies and get to travel and have some great memories.” And on what would make the season a success, he said: “You don’t play just to try and go 9-8 or 10-7. You play because you want to win a championship. I didn’t have to come back. But I believed in the team, and I feel like we’re starting to put some momentum together and we got a chance to do something special.”
Jerseys are “getting kind of expensive”
Rodgers was asked about how many opponents want his jersey after games. He said it has started to get him in trouble, because more than one player wanted his jersey, including Kenny Gainwell, his teammate in Pittsburgh last season who now plays for Tampa Bay. He gave his jersey to Gainwell and sent jerseys to the others. “There’s a cost associated with that that’s different in every team,” he said. “Some teams, they just give you your jerseys, other teams, they charge you money. So it’s getting kind of expensive.”
Body clocks, flag football and an old target
Asked whether staying on U.S. time gives the Steelers an edge over the Saints, who arrived earlier in the week, Rodgers did the math. The game kicks off at 2:30 p.m. in Paris, which he said is “9:30 on our body clocks” and 8:30 for the Saints. “It’s not a big difference,” he said. He then noted his own record: “I’ve been a part of three international games. Came on Thursday night, arrived Friday morning every time, and we’re one and two, so I don’t know what that says.”
He said he would like to see flag football in the 2028 Olympics and called for better pay for the U.S. women’s national flag football team. “The pay is very scant, shall we say, and not equal,” he said. “Not a big fan of that.” Asked whether he would ever coach in France, he smiled. “With all due respect, no. When my time is done in this game, it’ll be done,” he said, before adding that he “wouldn’t mind coming over and watching Mbappé play.”
Rodgers also welcomed back Marquez Valdes-Scantling, his former Green Bay Packers teammate, whom the Steelers signed to their practice squad on Tuesday after injuries to Michael Pittman Jr. and Roman Wilson. “I love MVS. I played with him a bunch of years,” Rodgers said. “They know how I like to play. They’re super smart. I think he’s going to help in the room.” The 4-2 Steelers play the Saints at the Stade de France on Sunday at 9:30 a.m. ET (4:30 p.m. in Cairo).
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