On Thursday night, Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers seemed to be upset. All night long.
Nearly every time Rodgers was shown on camera, he seemed to be pissed off. Sometimes (like when running back Jaylen Warren executed a flea flicker that Rodgers didn't think was called — even if it was) Rodgers had a good reason to be agitated. On other occasions, there was no apparent reason for it.
In on specific instance, Rodgers's irritation was completely warranted.
After throwing a 68-yard piss missile to tight end Pat Freiermuth, Rodgers celebrated. So did Steelers left tackle Broderick Jones. And Jones tackled Rodgers.
Watch the video. Rodgers was not happy about being driven to the ground by a six-foot, five-inch, 311-pound teammate. It was, by far, the hardest Rodgers had been hit all night.
So, no, Rodgers didn't like it. Nor should he have. The Steelers are true contenders this year (notwithstanding last night's showing) because they have Rodgers. They need to keep him healthy. Which means they need to minimize the number of hits he takes.
Which means he can't be taking unexpected hits from teammates.
This season, no one knows what's going to happen next. It's safe to say that no Steelers players will be hitting or tackling or otherwise assaulting Rodgers after a good play. Or a bad play. Or any play.
Bears DC Dennis Allen: Fond memories of Saints, but focus is on football this week
Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen has spent most of his NFL coaching career in New Orleans, but he said on Thursday that neither that history nor the way his time with the Saints ended will be on his mind this weekend.
Allen started his second stint with the Saints as their defensive coordinator in 2015 and moved up to the head coaching job when Sean Payton left the team after the 2021 season. Allen wasn't able to replicate Payton's success, however, and got fired after opening last season with a 2-7 record.
On Thursday, Allen said "I don’t think I’m going to go there" when asked about what went awry for the team last season and said he'll be keeping his mind on Sunday's game between his new team and his old one.
“A lot of good experiences, a lot of good people, a lot of wins,” Allen said, via Andrew Seligman of the Associated Press. “We were a part of a lot of success there. I’ve got fond memories of it, but this week is really all about let’s focus on the football. This is going to be about the players on the field, Bears versus the Saints, those guys will really determine the outcome of the game.”
The Bears rank 27th in points allowed and 26th in yards allowed, but Allen's unit has done a good job of forcing turnovers. The Bears are second in the league with 12 takeaways and their plus-10 turnover differential in the last three games has helped fuel the three-game winning streak they hope to extend against the Saints.
5 things to watch as Giants face Broncos in Week 7 of 2025 NFL season
The Giants have had 10 days to prepare for a tough matchup with the 4-2 Denver Broncos on Sunday, and optimism is high following New York’s best performance of the season in their 34-17 win over the Eagles on Thursday night.
Can Big Blue take advantage of a Broncos team that just returned from a grueling transatlantic trip?
Here are the biggest stories to watch as the Giants go for their third win in four games...
The Giants are 2-1 since Dart took over as the starting quarterback, and they’ve been reinvigorated with him at the helm as he has thrown four touchdown passes and rushed for two more.
The only other quarterbacks in NFL history to rush for 50 yards or more in each of their first three starts are Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts, and Dart will be looking to achieve this for a fourth straight game. He won’t just need his legs to rack up yardage, though. He’ll also need them to escape a dangerous Broncos pass rush that leads the league in sacks.
Did the Jets give the Giants a blueprint to slow down Denver's offense?
Despite losing 13-11 to the Broncos in London, the Jets defense played well, as they held Denver to fewer than 250 yards and fewer than 20 points for the first time all season. Can the Giants learn anything from how the Jets handled them?
The Broncos entered Sunday’s game with the league’s fourth-ranked offense, but the Jets held them to a season-low 78 rushing yards. One way they achieved this was by constantly bringing linebackers up to the edge to create an effective five-man front. Abdul Carter’s versatility makes this a viable option for Big Blue, too.
New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart (6) calls a play during the third quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at MetLife Stadium. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
New York likely feels that Andrew Thomas has as much chance of being able to neutralize the current NFL sack leader, Nik Bonitto,as any other tackle in the league. However, the Broncos also have Jonathon Cooper, Zach Allen, and John Franklin-Myers, who combined for 26 sacks last season, and four on Sunday.
Dart will need to be alert, elusive, and decisive with the ball to keep the pressure to a minimum.
Will the Giants avoid throwing at Patrick Surtain II?
Surtain is one of the best in the league and is coming off a game where he helped hold Garrett Wilson to a season-low 13 yards.
For Dart, the approach to facing Surtain might be simply to avoid risking throwing the ball in his direction. In recent games, the Giants’ best pass catching options have been Theo Johnson and Wan’Dale Robinson, who can produce out of the slot. Surtain usually stays outside, so that may be where the Giants look to attack in the passing game.
Which version of Courtland Sutton will we see?
The Jets also stifled Bo Nix and the Denver passing game in Week 6. A big part of that was Sauce Gardner travelling with Sutton and holding him to one catch. The Giants could use Paulson Adebo in a similar fashion.
After the game, Gardner spent a time praising Sutton and noting that one game doesn’t define the entire season for a great player like him. He noted that Sutton had been playing well prior to Sunday, having averaged six catches and 99 yards over the previous three games.
Even if the Giants can limit the damage from Sutton, they’ll need to be wary of Troy Franklin and Evan Engram, who exploited some breakdowns in zone coverage by the Jets last week.
