Aaron Rodgers Addresses Narrative of Packers-Steelers Being a 'Revenge Game' for Him

The quarterback will face Green Bay for the first time since leaving the team after the 2022 season.
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will face his former team the Packers in Week 8.
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will face his former team the Packers in Week 8. / Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will face his former team—the Packers—on Sunday Night Football for the first time since leaving the team after the 2022 season. Rodgers spent the first 18 years of his NFL career with Green Bay, and it was believed he would retire in the green and gold.

However, the quarterback ended up traded to the Jets. The two parties didn't seem to part on the best of terms because their partnership came to an end. So, heading into this weekend's matchup now on the Steelers, how does Rodgers feel about the Packers? It seems his opinions have softened as of late.

“I don’t have any animosity toward the organization,” Rodgers said via ESPN's Brooke Pryor. “Obviously, I wish that things had been better in our last year there, but I have a great relationship with a lot of people still in that organization. This is not a revenge game for me. I’m just excited to see some of those guys and be on Sunday Night Football again.”

When asked if time is what helped heal his feelings about his former organization, Rodgers replied by saying "absence makes the heart grow fonder, maybe."

Even though Rodgers doesn't consider the matchup to be a "revenge game," it would still be huge for him to beat his former team.

Rodgers already faced a former team of his to start the season when Pittsburgh played New York in Week 1. The 41-year-old downplayed the reunion game then, but doesn't necessarily seem to be doing that heading into the Green Bay matchup.


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Madison Williams
MADISON WILLIAMS

Madison Williams is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where she specializes in tennis but covers a wide range of sports from a national perspective. Before joining SI in 2022, Williams worked at The Sporting News. Having graduated from Augustana College, she completed a master’s in sports media at Northwestern University. She is a dog mom and an avid reader.