Former Iowa State Star Throws Fiery Words at Steelers' Aaron Rodgers

Former Iowa State Cyclones star Will McDonald has established himself as quite the pass rusher on the NFL level, racking up 10.5 sacks for the New York Jets last season.

McDonald was a teammate of Aaron Rodgers last year, but now, Rodgers is an opponent, as the future Hall-of-Fame quarterback signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers after being released by the Jets.

New York will be facing Rodgers and the Steelers in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season, and McDonald appears more than ready to battle his ex-teammate.

"I've always wanted to sack Rodgers," McDonald told reporters. "When I first came here, obviously I wasn't able to do that because we were a team. Now, I think he's going to be very competitive. I'm sure he already knows what I'm about, so I'm sure he's going to have his head on his shoulders. He's a vet, so I'm sure he's got a couple of tricks up his sleeve."

McDonald was originally selected by the Jets with the 15th overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, which many saw as a puzzling move at the time. He then logged just 14 tackles and three sacks during his rookie campaign, so a whole lot of people were wondering if New York made the right decision.

Then, the Iowa State product broke out last season, cementing himself as one of the better sack artists in the league.

McDonald still has plenty of room for improvement, but there is no doubt that he is an ascending talent who could be in for an even bigger season in 2025.

The 26-year-old spent five years with the Cyclones between 2018 and 2022, registering double-digit sacks in back-to-back campaigns in 2020 and 2021.

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