Aaron Rodgers' former teammate doubts QB, Steelers ahead of 2026 season

Jansen's comments were not a direct shot at Rodgers as much as they were a reality check for anyone expecting fireworks. Having shared a locker room with Rodgers during the early years of his career, Jansen believes the quarterback's relationship with Mike McCarthy should be one of the least concerning aspects of Pittsburgh's season.

Instead, his "not particularly interesting" remark suggests he views the Steelers as a solid but unspectacular team, one that is more likely to meet expectations than exceed them. Whether Pittsburgh embraces that outside perception or uses it as motivation remains to be seen, but Rodgers and McCarthy will have an opportunity to prove Jansen wrong once the games begin.

Jansen said Rodgers played "OK" in 2025

If there was any doubt about how Jansen views Rodgers' impact at this stage of his career, he quickly erased it. While acknowledging the quarterback can still deliver in big moments, he stopped well short of suggesting Rodgers elevates Pittsburgh into the NFL's elite, saying:

“I thought Aaron played OK last year. You’re not paying Aaron $45, $50 million. … I still feel like they’re a 9-8 team. They’re gonna beat some teams that they shouldn’t, and they’re gonna lose some games that they shouldn’t. I would certainly trust the ball in Aaron’s hand in the fourth quarter, but it’s sort of just an uninteresting 9-8, 10-7, 7-10 kind of team for me.”

Jansen's words highlight a sentiment circulating around the league that Rodgers is no longer perceived as a franchise quarterback capable of putting a team in the Super Bowl in contention with him at the helm. While he's confident the veteran quarterback still has enough left in the tank to win games in the clutch, it doesn't necessarily mean he can drag a team into contention. 

For Jansen, he sees the Steelers as a competitive team, but Rodgers doesn't necessarily elevate that into the 'dangerous' tier. That's a particularly strong take coming from someone who watched Rodgers rise to stardom in Green Bay.

Rodgers criticism is a growing sentiment

Whether Jansen's prediction proves accurate will be decided over the course of the season, but his comments highlight the skepticism that continues to surround both Rodgers and the Steelers. Pittsburgh believes the veteran quarterback gives the franchise a chance to compete for something bigger. Until Rodgers and the Steelers prove they are more than a middle-of-the-pack team, however, outside opinions like Jansen's are unlikely to disappear.