Oct 12, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) warms up before the game at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Steelers’ Aaron Rodgers Calls Out NFL Schedule

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI
By Jacob Punturi | Last updated Oct 16, 2025 7:00 AM ET

PITTSBURGH — One of the best things about the Pittsburgh Steelers having a 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers on their team is his unfiltered comments. It’s gotten him into trouble throughout his NFL career, but now in year 21 in the NFL, he’s forsaken any sort of courtesy and just states his thoughts.

The Steelers quarterback spoke with the media ahead of their Week 7 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals. The game comes just four days after their Week 6 contest against the Cleveland Browns, which is an unusually short amount of rest and time between games. According to Rodgers, the decision to do this comes down to just one thing - the NFL making money.

“Thursday’s all about the league making money,” he said. “We understand that. Used to be Thanksgiving Thursdays, then they added the Thursday game. You know, then Amazon coming in with a nice chunk of change. We know what it’s all about. But it’s the same. Everybody’s got at least one of them, so we just have to suck it up. We go on the road and take care of business, we get a break“

Money Talks

What Rodgers is hitting on here is the 10-ton elephant in the room. Everyone is painfully aware of the money-making venture that is the NFL. It’s why they added in Thursday night games. It’s why they expanded Monday Night Football. It’s why they expanded into a global market, and now there are multiple international games each NFL season, with the growing possibility that the league expands into Europe in some capacity.

Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Injury Concerns

The financials are a huge part of this for the NFL, but the trade off is that games being played so closely together presents a huge issue. The Steelers have been banged up to begin the 2025 season, with multiple players suffering injuries in each of their games. They are currently awaiting the return of Calvin Austin III and have players like Malik Harrison and Corey Trice Jr trying to make their way back after stints on the Reserve/Injured List.

Now playing four days after their last game, the possibility of another injury only increases. According to a published study in the Journal of Knee Surgey, put together by the University of Missouri School of Medicine, knee injuries can increase up to 3.7 times when playing on less than seven days rest. The school looked at injuries between 2009 and 2023 and found that tears in ligaments and tendons of the knee happened much more frequently when players had short weeks of rest.

The Steelers hope to avoid any other injuries when they take on the Bengals. If they don’t, it will likely only further cement Rodgers’ belief in why the NFL continues to make these scheduling choices.

This article first appeared on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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