Aaron Rodgers is seemingly entering the 2026 season with a “no-nonsense” attitude where he wants the best out of every Pittsburgh Steelers teammate. But does that give him the liberty to publicly call out their shortcomings and mistakes? Asante Samuel, who spent 11 seasons in the NFL, begs to differ, calling it a total violation of locker room trust.

“Aaron Rodgers is out of pocket, man,” Samuel said on the Say What Needs To Be Said podcast. “You never call out a teammate to the media. That’s an unwritten rule. That’s breaking the football G-code. And Aaron Rodgers has a certain way of showing he doesn’t like a teammate…If I was Roman Wilson, me and Aaron Rodgers would need to have a conversation about this, calling me out in front of the media, to the media.

“We definitely have to talk about this. Why are you putting our business out there for everyone to criticize and have something to say? But at the same time, I would want my quarterback to see I really want him to throw me the football. But as of now, man, Roman Wilson is not getting any football passes in the game from Aaron Rodgers at this point.”

Wide receiver Roman Wilson will be entering his third NFL season, after having briefly played as Rodgers’ target last year. While DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. will lead the WR room, Wilson is expected to secure the slot receiver role.

However, the preseason game performance has been quite underwhelming for the 25-year-old wide receiver. He played the first two games against the Green Bay Packers and the New York Jets, but could register only three receptions for 23 yards.

Rodgers called out Wilson for a mistake on an underneath route that Asante Samuel Jr intercepted. According to the QB, that was a “repeat mistake.”

“Roman [Wilson] made a repeat mistake,” Rodgers said. “That’s a good learning experience. Roman is a great kid. He’s had a fantastic camp. I have confidence in him, but mistakes can happen. This is a great one to happen in practice.”

For Rodgers, the 2026 season is crucial as it is his final stint in the NFL. After spending 21 seasons in the league and winning a Super Bowl and four MVP titles, the 42-year-old QB has confirmed his retirement timeline.

While Asante Samuel and many others saw Rodgers’ comments on Wilson as concerning, former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin shared a different opinion on the matter.

“He’s acknowledging that he is a young, developing player. He’s also educating him to the fact that as long as you’re having new issues, then progress is being made,” Tomlin said on The Rich Eisen Show. “Repeat errors, there’s a price to pay for that. And so he’s rapping him on the beak while at the same time putting his arm around him.”

The Steelers kick off their 2026 season on Sunday, September 13, against the Atlanta Falcons. And on that day, it will be interesting to see how Roman Wilson performs.