Steelers Get First Taste Of Aaron Rodgers’ Infamous Sideline Frustrations

The Pittsburgh Steelers have had plenty of ups and downs with their overhauled offense during 2025 training camp and preseason. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has seemed to be mostly happy during his short time in Pittsburgh so far, but he is known for being a very demanding player. The big question in that regard was how he would respond when things go wrong, as he has rubbed numerous players the wrong way in the past with his way of dealing with things. However, Steelers fans got a sneak peak as to what it would look like for this upcoming season. 

ESPN's Ben Solak attended training camp on Thursday, August 7th. While he was there, he witnessed a rough miscommunication between Rodgers and receiver Roman Wilson. He detailed exactly what happened on that play.

"A miscommunication on a rep between quarterback Aaron Rodgers and second-year wide receiver Roman Wilson," Solak said. "In a one-on-one period in the high red zone, Wilson was running an out-breaking route from the slot. The cornerback had nice underneath leverage, but that meant he couldn't see the trajectory of an incoming throw. Rodgers tried to throw the ball to the back shoulder, stopping Wilson's momentum to allow the corner to breeze by -- not an uncommon approach in the red zone. Wilson adjusted late and barely got an outstretched hand on the ball -- incomplete."

Obviously, things had not been going very well for the Steelers up to this point, especially on offense. Now, the question here was how would Rodgers respond. He didn't just go off on Wilson, he also reportedly went after Wide Receivers Coach Zach Azzanni.

"Rodgers let him have it. On the long jog back to his position group, Rodgers alternated between laying into Wilson and laying into Zach Azzanni, the Steelers' wide receivers coach. The QB wagged his head, planted his hand on his hips and stopped only to start up again twice," Solak explained.

Rodgers has also been known to vent his frustrations about the coaching staff, and this was nothing different. Clearly, he at least partially blamed Azzanni for Wilson's struggles in development up to that point. The offense previously had an awful practice earlier that week, so frustrations were already starting to build up. That miscommunication was the one that finally broke Rodgers.

Azzanni is known for being a very demanding coach as well, so it must have felt unusual to see an NFL player give him a piece of his mind like that. It also shows the power that the 41-year-old quarterback has on the team, as Rodgers was able to talk to a position coach like that in the first place. He has not even played a snap for the Steelers in preseason, and he's already showing where he is on the team food chain. 

Steelers' Roman Wilson Showing Potential Despite Slow Start

After that whole tirade and all the struggles, Wilson has since developed into a probable starter for the Steelers. Even with Calvin Austin III starting to return from injury, it seems like the second-year wideout has taken over, and it's now his job to lose. Worst-case scenario, he is now the primary backup behind Austin as the two players could keep rotating in and out during regular season games. 

After two preseason games, Rodgers has yet to actually play in an actual game for the Steelers, so it's still uncertain if him and Wilson actually have developed real chemistry together, or if they have just thrived off of seeing the same Steelers defense every day for almost a month. Same goes with him and Austin, due to his injury. It is currently unclear if the former MVP will play in the preseason finale, but if he does, his work with both receivers could determine who starts.

What do you think about Rodgers' infuriated rant towards Wilson and Azzanni? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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