The big topic of discussion around the NFL is the back-and-forth between Aaron Rodgers and Sean Payton. It started with Payton’s comments about former Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett, who’s now Rodgers’ offensive coordinator with the New York Jets, and is drawing reaction from people around the league after Rodgers responded.
One of the responses came from Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, who spoke with NBC Sports’ Peter King at training camp this week. Tomlin shared his excitement for the Week 5 game between the Jets and Broncos. He sounded like the average NFL fan, looking forward to seeing Rodgers and Robert Saleh square off with Payton on the field.
“Mike Tomlin said something funny, though, to me. He goes, ‘Man, all I know is that I hope that game — the Denver-Jets game — is on national TV. Maybe at a time where everybody can watch it because I want to watch that football game,'” King said on The Dan Patrick Show.
Payton, who’s preparing for his first season as Broncos head coach, made waves for his comments about Denver’s 2022 season under Hackett. The former Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator had a rough go in just 15 games, finishing with a 4-11 record before his firing through less than a year.
Hackett received plenty of criticism during his short time in Denver, and Payton spoke candidly about that in an interview with USA Today.
“Oh, man,” Payton said. “There’s so much dirt around that. There’s 20 dirty hands, for what was allowed, tolerated in the fricking training rooms, the meeting rooms. The offense. I don’t know Hackett. A lot of people had dirt on their hands. It wasn’t just Russell. He didn’t just flip. He still has it. This B.S. that he hit a wall? Shoot, they couldn’t get a play in. They were 29th in the league in pre-snap penalties on both sides of the ball.”
That led to a harsh response from Rodgers, who played for Hackett in Green Bay from 2019-21 and will do so again this year with the Jets.
“I love Nathaniel Hackett, and those comments were very surprising, for a coach to do that to another coach,” Rodgers told Peter Schrager on NFL+. “My love for Hack goes deep, you know, we had some great years together in Green Bay,” Rodgers said. “[We] kept in touch, I love him and his family, he’s an incredible family man and an incredible dad.
“And on the field, he is arguably my favorite coach I’ve ever had in the NFL. Just his approach to it, how he makes it fun. How he cares about the guys — just how he goes about his business with respect, with leadership, with honesty, with integrity.”
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