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Mike Tomlin Didn't Seem to Love Reporter's Question About Aaron Rodgers's Bad Game

Andy Nesbitt

The Steelers fell to 5-4 after their loss to the Chargers on Sunday night.
The Steelers fell to 5-4 after their loss to the Chargers on Sunday night. / @NFL
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Aaron Rodgers and the the Steelers had a rough Week 10, losing to the Chargers 25-10 on Sunday Night Football. The 41-year-old quarterback struggled all game long, throwing for just 161 yards with one late touchdown pass and two interceptions.

The Steelers are now 5-4 on the season following their loss in Los Angeles and are still on top of the AFC North standings but the Ravens, who have won three straight games and have Lamar Jackson back in the lineup, are suddenly right on Pittsburgh's heels. The two rivals have yet to face each other this season.

After Sunday night's loss Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin was asked about Rodgers' bad game against the Chargers. He didn't seem too thrilled with the question and instead immediately threw one back at the reporter.

"How would you assess Aaron’s performance tonight?" the reporter asked.

Tomlin fired back: "How would you? Next."

Here's that tense postgame interaction:

Rodgers has had a decent start to his first season with the Steelers, throwing 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions through nine games. His last two outings, however, haven't been great. He threw just one touchdown in a Week 9 win over the red-hot Colts and then struggled in front of a national television audience on Sunday night.

"This was not my best performance," Rodgers said in his postgame press conference late Sunday night. "I got to play better than this for us to win. Whatever it takes ... if it's better checks, if it's better throws, whatever it is, I got to play better. I will. ... We got to play better on offense, for sure. But this is part of the season. There's ebbs and flows, there's ups and downs, and we can't ride the wave."

Rodgers and the Steelers will look to rebound this coming Sunday when they host the Bengals. Cincinnati's dreadful defense could be just what Rodgers needs to get going again. He threw for 249 yards and four touchdowns against them earlier this season but could only watch from the sideline as Joe Flacco led the Bengals on a last-minute drive that ended with a game-winning field goal.

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Andy Nesbitt
ANDY NESBITT

Andy Nesbitt is the assistant managing editor of audience engagement at Sports Illustrated. He works closely with the Breaking and Trending News team to shape SI’s daily coverage across all sports. A 20-year veteran of the sports media business, he has worked for Fox Sports, For the Win, The Boston Globe and NBC Sports, having joined SI in February 2023. Nesbitt is a golf fanatic who desperately wants to see the Super Bowl played on a Saturday night.

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