Steelers Now
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers made it clear during his media availability on Wednesday that he has nothing but gratitude toward his former team the Green Bay Packers.
“I don’t have any animosity toward the organization,” Rodgers said ahead of Sunday night’s game against the Packers. “Obviously I wish that things had been better in our last year there, but I have a great relationship with a lot of people still in that organization. This is not a revenge game for me.”
Despite what Rodgers said, his former teammate David Bakhtiari knows how much this game means to the four-time NFL MVP.
“I can’t wait to hear all the soundbites of ‘it’s just another game’ from both sides all week,” Bakhtiari told former teammate John Kuhn on The Tundra podcast.
“Let’s just cut the b——t. This is a really big game. Of course Aaron wants that he’s beaten every single team. Of course he wants to stick it back to the Packers, because somehow, some way, he feels like it’s probably wronged him in any sort of fashion because that’s just how he’s wired.”
Sunday night’s game will have an endless amount of storylines with Rodgers playing Green Bay for the first time since departing after the 2022 season.
Rodgers can become one of five quarterbacks in NFL history to beat all 32 teams with a win over the Packers on Sunday night.
With a win over the Packers, Rodgers will join Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees on the all-time list of QBs to beat all 32 NFL teams.
Bakhtiari knows many in the Packers organization would love nothing more than to beat Rodgers, as well.
“I’m sure the Packers, everyone up on that third floor, coaches, I’m sure even guys that played with Aaron, would love to beat Aaron too, Bakhtiari said.
Bakhtiari added, “I want the Packers to win, but I want Aaron to play really well.”
Rodgers is a Steeler now, but someday he’ll retire as a Packer.
“I was there for 18 years,” Rodgers said to the Green Bay media on Thursday. “Regardless of when I hang it up, that’s the bulk of my career. I’ll retire a Packer and see what happens after that. I’ve got a lot of love for the organization and my time there. They asked this week is it a revenge game or whatever. What do I got to be avenging here? They made me a ton of money. I grew up there, spent some of the best years of my life there. I’ve got nothing but love for the organization.”
Alan Saunders provided reporting from Pittsburgh.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Former Teammate Says Aaron Rodgers Wants to Stick It to Packers: ‘That’s Just How He’s Wired’
