Aaron Rodgers Makes Abrupt Decision After Steelers Loss

Rodgers’ future was not the only major talking point following Pittsburgh’s season-ending loss. Head coach Mike Tomlin’s job security has also emerged as a hot topic as the Steelers suffered another early playoff exit.

The media asked Rodgers to share his thoughts on Tomlin’s future during the postgame press conference. The four-time first-team All-Pro quarterback had nothing but good things to say about his coach.

"I mean, this league has changed a lot in my 21 years,” he said. “You know, when you hear a conversation about the Mike Tomlins of the world, the Matt LaFleurs of the world, those are just two that kind of I played for, and when I first got in the league, there wouldn't be conversation about whether those guys were on the hot seat. You know?

“But the way that the league is covered now and the way that there's snap decisions and the validity given to the Twitter experts and all the experts on TV now, who make it seem like they know what the hell they're talking about, to me, that's an absolute joke.

“And for either of those two guys to be on a hot seat is really a apropos of where we're at as a society and a league. Because obviously Matt's done a lot of great things in Green Bay and we had a lot of success. Mike T. has had more success than damn near anybody in the league, you know, for the last 19, 20 years.”

After calling out Tomlin’s critics, Rodgers made it abundantly clear that the 53-year-old has his full backing.

“When you have the right guy and the culture is right, you don't think about making a change,” he continued. “But there's a lot of pressure that comes from the outside and obviously that sways decisions from time to time. But it's not how I would do things and not how the league used to be."

Despite his lengthy response, reporters still pressed Rodgers for more on Tomlin. The 10-time Pro Bowler had had enough and decided to walk out of the interview abruptly.

"I've answered that a number of times," Rodgers said. "I've talked extensively about how I feel about Mike. And I just didn't have the [expletive] answers."

Rodgers did not appreciate being prodded repeatedly, especially after he had already provided an extensive statement about Tomlin.

Rodgers’ one-year deal with the Steelers has now come to an end. He will need to negotiate a new contract if he chooses to play on for one more year. If he decides otherwise, then Monday's game would have been the last time Rodgers took the field.