For Aaron Rodgers, being an elite QB this long means the game isn’t just physical anymore; it’s mental too. This is the rub for the quarterback right now, especially after that baffling 31-17 loss to the Seahawks back in Week 2: a 54.5% completion rate, 58.0 passer rating, 2 INTs (that weren’t his fault). And so, when a reporter cornered him post-game, asking if he was frustrated with the inefficiencies, a different kind of frustration simmered.

“I can play better for sure,” Rodgers said. “….Some of our best plays is just getting the ball into our playmaker’s hands and letting them go. So, I just need to be disciplined like I usually am and get the ball to the guys,” adding that it’s often just about taking “what the defense gives you.”

But here’s the thing—Rodgers, the same guy who just passed his Packers predecessor Brett Favre (508) for fourth all-time in career passing TDs (510), has already shown he can be a maestro. The Week 1 win over the Jets saw him go for 244 yds with 4 TDs and zero INTs. A masterclass. Now, this internal conflict between the player he knows he is and the player he was against the Seahawks seems to be the real opponent.

Even in the following week’s win over the New England Patriots, when he threw TDs No. 509 and 510 to push past Favre, it wasn’t clean. He finished with just 139 yds and a pick. His performance has been a strange, beautiful, and deeply flawed masterpiece. He seems trapped in a system he understands completely, but which offers him no easy path to freedom.

And this is where Pittsburgh’s head coach, Mike Tomlin, steps in, offering a public shield against the very storm Rodgers seems to be fighting internally.

Tomlin’s vote of confidence meets Rodgers’ reality check

He sees a different, more holistic picture. Tomlin was asked if Rodgers had lived up to expectations. His reply was an unequivocal vote of confidence, a testament to what he sees behind the curtain. “He certainly has been [what we expected],” Tomlin said, adding that it’s “not only in terms of his play, but in terms of his relationship with the game, how he interacts with teammates, how he loves the preparation process.”

For Tomlin, those things have all been “double thumbs up, so it’s reasonable to expect the in-stadium performance to mirror that.” He said that while Rodgers “may be disappointed with how he played last week, but we had an opportunity this week to do something about it.” He sees the 2-1 record as the 2 wins, not just the one ugly loss.

But even Ben’s worried.  While Rodgers preaches a “can’t ride the highs and ride the lows” and hating the new helmet mentality, we’re yet to see how they prepare to take on the Vikings in Dublin; they’ll face what is arguably the best defense (1st in the league for Defensive EPA), a challenge that will test whether that Week 2 film session truly paid off.