With Calvin Austin III now down with a shoulder injury and set to miss several weeks, per reports, the Pittsburgh Steelers need to invest in a wide receiver sooner rather than later. But it seems like their veteran QB, Aaron Rodgers, is standing in the way.

Per insider Ray Fittipaldo, the Steelers are hesitant to trade for another WR because of their struggles in getting the ball to the ones they already have. As bizarre as the reasoning may sound, it is true that Rodgers, despite his steady form (68.5% completion), has not had the best time connecting with the wideouts.

Before he sat out W4 with a knee injury, the team’s leading receiver was Jaylen Warren, a running back, with 142 receiving yards to his name. Of course, DK Metcalf now leads the receiver room with 261 yards after having a near-perfect game against the Vikings, where he held on to 5 out of 5 targets for 126 yards and a score. But even then, Aaron Rodgers hasn’t exactly helped his wideouts rack up the most impressive numbers.

Through 4 games, the team has managed just 76 total receptions, ranking as low as 25th in the league. When asked about the lack of production from his WRs and TEs through the first three weeks, Rodgers didn’t mince words, pointing out issues with protection and communication in general, rather than blaming any one player in particular.

“We didn’t have enough guys open at times,” he said. “We gotta get open. I gotta make the plays that are there, and we gotta convert on third down to keep us on the field.” 

Perhaps a trade for Tyreek Hill would’ve changed things for the better, but the Dolphins WR now finds himself dealing with what could be a season-ending injury. Luckily, head coach Mike Tomlin has the all-important bye week to iron things out.

Speaking of making decisions in the bye week, the head coach has, in fact, already made one.

Mike Tomlin keeps his promise

Yet, this team just boarded a plane back from Dublin with a 3-1 record, fresh off a win that was both ugly and deeply meaningful. The night before they took the field at Croke Park, Mike Tomlin told them about the late Dan Rooney, the former U.S. ambassador to Ireland and an architect of the Steelers dynasty.

He talked about Rooney’s vision and his strength that helped the Steelers win 6 Super Bowls. His only ask was that they leave that historic ground with a victory. And they did, by surviving a late Vikings surge to win 24-21. It wasn’t pretty—Rodgers was an efficient 18-of-22 for 200 yds and a TD, but it was the defense (6 sacks, 2 INTs) that turned up big time late in the game. So, in return, Tomlin gave them something unprecedented in his 19-year tenure.

“I promised them a sweet bye week if we got the business done,” Tomlin told reporters after the game. “I’ll probably have to fulfill that promise. There probably won’t be a lot of work in the week that lies ahead. We’ll get ourselves a good bonus on Monday and a good week’s work coming out of it, but they’re deserving of that.” It was a move of profound trust, especially for a team grappling with injuries and a clunky offense.