Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has one regret about starting his final NFL season with an exhibition game against the team that drafted him.
He would have preferred Thursday鈥檚 matchup with the Packers take place in Green Bay rather than Pittsburgh. Rodgers wanted to have one final moment in the place where he spent his first 18 seasons and won four and a Super Bowl.
鈥淚 was really hoping this one was going to be in Green Bay, not just to get back at Lambeau one more time, but to head out to Chives for a dinner and maybe head out to Green Bay Country Club for a quick nine or something,鈥� Rodgers said Wednesday in a Zoom session with Packers reporters. 鈥淚 was really hoping it was going to be in Green Bay, for a lot of reasons.鈥�
This will be the second time Rodgers has faced his former team since in 2023, though there鈥檚 no indication yet on Thursday. Both games were in Pittsburgh, so Rodgers will after this season having never played against the Packers at Lambeau Field.
鈥淚t would have been strange, being in that locker room and stuff,鈥� Rodgers said. 鈥淏ut I would have found my way over, like many former players have over the years, found my way over to Flea鈥檚 (Packers head athletic trainer Bryan Engel鈥檚) office and hang out back there and see some of the guys and see some of the trainers and equipment staff and all the people I really care about that still work there.
“Yeah, I was definitely bummed out that we weren鈥檛 in Lambeau for this one.鈥�
Rodgers鈥� Steelers to the Packers last October. the quarterback Green Bay selected in the first round of the to become Rodgers鈥� eventual successor, threw for 360 yards and three touchdowns that night.
When he was asked what he missed the most about Wisconsin aside from football and the fans, Rodgers talked about the house he owned during his Packers years, the meals he enjoyed at Chives and the rounds of golf he played. Then he turned the subject back toward football.
鈥淭he falls there are just awesome, when the weather gets that cool little nip,鈥� Rodgers said. 鈥淚 loved the night games at Lambeau, especially the Sunday nights, Monday nights and occasional Thursday nights. Just so much fun. There鈥檚 nothing like that crowd. I鈥檝e been other places, I knew that when I was in Green Bay, but there鈥檚 nothing like that fan base and the way they travel and the crowds at home.
鈥淧layers around the league, they talk about how special it is to play at Lambeau, and sometimes you might miss that or forget about that when you鈥檙e playing because it becomes so normal to have such an amazing crowd and they鈥檙e tailgating and they鈥檙e loud and they rarely sell their tickets to other teams鈥� fans. There鈥檚 a lot of great things about Wisconsin. I grew up there, really, and became a little more mature as an adult over the years there and had a great time and still have a lot of close friends there, a lot of fond memories.鈥�
Rodgers did play his other former team as a visiting player last season when he made his Steelers debut and led Pittsburgh to a over the New York Jets in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Rodgers was from 2023-24 after they acquired him from Green Bay, though he missed virtually all of 2023 after in the season opener.
The Steelers host the Jets on Aug. 21 in their second preseason game.
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