Will Aaron Rodgers Play vs. Packers? | Steelers Camp Report
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Video Transcript
Hey, everybody.
This is Brendan Howe of Steelers Now, here at St. Vincent College on this Tuesday.
The Pittsburgh Steelers did not practice outside today.
The rain pushed them inside, kind of messed with practice for the second day in a row here as they prepare to take on the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night at Acrisure Stadium.
Before then, we got to learn a few things today.
So not too much from practice, being that was a closed practice.
Had to confirm things, and really wasn't that much to confirm.
Seemed like a bit of a slower practice.
But we did get to talk to a, a few people, including quarterback Aaron Rodgers today.
So actually, just about ten minutes ago, he talked there in the media room and learned a multitude of things.
So he, he talked about D.K.
Metcalf and Michael Pittman.
I know I talked yesterday, D.K.
Is dealing with an injury.
It's not specified what he's injured with there.
Michael Pittman was out, again.
So we'll see a lot of Jeremy Bernard, of Roman Wilson, most likely there on Thursday night.
Alan got to talk to Jeremy Bernard after practice as I was talking to Eli Heydenreich, and we kind of heard from him that he doesn't Like, he's gonna be playing on the outside, but he views himself as much different than D.K.
Metcalf and Michael Pittman, which in the size aspect of things, that's pretty obvious.
But, he's not going out there, he's not gonna try to be D.K.
Metcalf and Michael Pittman when he's playing on the outside.
He kinda wants to be his own receiver.
Which he made three different stops in college, Michigan State, Washington, Alabama.
Is very used to learning a new playbook, even if he did follow Kalen DeBoer from Washington to Alabama.
So this kind of process of getting up to speed and learning something that's new to him, not very hard.
Aaron Rodgers also talked, too, about, like, yesterday Will Howard said, and I, and I wrote about this and I tweeted about it, that the preseason is real to him.
It's real football to him.
You hear a lot of times that it's not real football.
Aaron Rodgers is one of those guys that says it's not real football.
You can't really get much out of it.
But he did admit that when he was in Will Ho- Will Howard and Jerome Bettis' positions, that the preseason wa- was like his Super Bowl.
He got to go out there and get his reps, s- behind Brett Favre there in Green Bay.
And fast-forward twenty-two seasons, or however many seasons it's been since he was kind of that guy who was just playing in the preseason, Smitty and I talked when he was with me the other day about Aaron pulls aside these defensive backs, the younger ones like Asante Samuel, Jamel Dean.
Dean even hopped in even though he's a veteran, and he kind of gives them pointers throughout practices.
And I got to ask him about that.
I, I asked Asante yesterday, and he said he's just trying to learn from Aaron.
Turns out it's kind of like a, a mutual thing.
Like, Aaron still wants to have hard practices.
He tells Asante not to make things too easy on him.
And the intricacies of taking a snap from center, under center or in the shotgun on the goal line, he kind of got into some of that, which is cool to hear.
Like, it- it's really fun to hear, especially from a guy who is gonna be a first-ballot Hall, Hall of Famer.
He's a guy that's won a Super Bowl, four MVPs.
Like, Aaron Rodgers is Aaron Rodgers, and to hear him talk about football, it's pretty surreal at times, even still having covered him here for two seasons.
We talked to Will Howard and Mason Rudolph, and I, I mentioned to you guys the other night that Cam Heyward said Aaron Rodgers is big into pranks.
Mason Rudolph gave some insight into those yesterday and said that Aaron's been slapping bumper stickers all over cars, his teammates' cars that kind of get him back.
Aaron mentioned today he has unlimited funds to pull off pranks, so if you wanna go into a pranking battle with him, you're probably gonna lose.
You don't really have the resources that he does.
And Mason mentioned a piece of artwork that he gifted Aaron for Christmas, which Aaron, Aaron laughed.
He said, "I love it.
My wife doesn't really love it."
so I don't know.
Use your imagination there.
But more from today's practice is Eli Heydenreich, a Pittsburgh kid, fighting for a spot on this roster, maybe to get on the practice squad.
He will step into Acrisure Stadium for the first time as a player on Thursday.
He was at the Steelers' last home Or not the last home game there, second to last, where Tyler Lukeman misses that kick.
He was in the stands for that as a fan.
He gets to step on and kind of live that dream, which was cool to hear.
When he played at Mount Lebanon, the WPIAL championship was actually held at Norwin, so he has not had a chance to play at Acrisure Stadium yet, which he seems to be very excited about.
And, like, he's a guy, you grow up here, you watch the Steelers your whole life, as someone like me has.
Like, that's a dream that everybody, everybody has when they're younger, that they wanna go out and they wanna wear a Pittsburgh Steelers jersey.
They wanna play for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he gets to realize that, which will be really cool for him.
More things from today.
I'm trying to think here.
It was interesting seeing that indoor facility.
I, I hadn't got to cover practice up there or be in there.
There's a basketball court.
I think there's a pickleball court.
Room for activities.
Not that the Steelers were too concerned with those, as they prepare for Pittsbur- or for, for- prepare for the Green Bay Packers here.
So, for Steelers Now, I am Brendan Howe.
I know that there's a l- only so much time in your day, and I appreciate you spending some time with me.
