The Pittsburgh Steelers are fighting to stay alive in the AFC playoff picture. Pittsburgh did not help matters in Week 13 when they got smacked around by Buffalo in a 26-7 beatdown. One national pundit believes that QB Aaron Rodgers is to blame for Pittsburgh's failures this season.
Skip Bayless slapped the veteran QB with the “diva” label on the latest episode of his The Arena podcast.
“Aaron Rodgers is a finger pointing, blame deflecting diva of the highest order,” Bayless declared on Tuesday. “And he did it again yesterday. He did it even off this. He’s trying to say, ‘Yeah, I’ll take accountability.’ But look at those and look at that.”
Bayless puts the blame for Pittsburgh's last loss squarely on Rodgers. He also criticized him for spreading the blame around to his teammates.
Bayless also suggested that Rodgers' behavior could prevent him from being a respected leader. Especially among his wide receivers.
“If I’m one of those wide receivers I say screw you brother. I don’t want to play for you, I don’t want to play with you,” Bayless added. “And that’s what happened to him at the end in Green Bay. They didn’t want to deal with him because he’s vintage Aaron on the field. It’s always throwing up his hands like, ‘What are you doing? It’s never his fault. I’m sorry I’m not going to give him a pass for this. He is the epitome, he is the reason this team is crumbling right before your very eyes. He’s not a leader.”
Rodgers and the Steelers will be put to the test during the rest of the regular season. Pittsburgh has five games left to fight their way back into the AFC playoff picture.
If they can't make it happen, big changes could be coming to Pittsburgh this offseason. And those changes could include a new quarterback.
Rodgers turned 42 years old on Tuesday, which only escalated the conversation around his eventual retirement from the NFL.
Pittsburgh has all the motivation in the world to go on a deep playoff run this season. But they have to get into the dance first, which starts by winning the next game in front of them.
Next up for the Steelers is a Week 14 matchup against the Ravens.
