The Pittsburgh Steelers will not have an easy game in Week 8. They will be hosting the Green Bay Packers, who have one of the best defenses in the NFL -- especially against the run. Of course, the whole world will get to see this contest, since it is on Sunday Night Football. There are tons of storylines going in about Aaron Rodgers getting to face the team that made him a legend. There are plenty of good feels going around, but once it's time to kick off, all bets are off. It quickly becomes business.
Green Bay Packers
Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers celebrates with teammates after a touchdown.
When it's time to play, the Steelers have an ace up their sleeve with Rodgers. ESPN's Rob Demovsky explained why, and so did Packers defensive back Keisean Nixon.
"One of the hallmarks of coordinator Jeff Hafley's defense is deception: trying to get the quarterback to think one thing is coming, but bringing another," Demovsky explained. "That might not work against Aaron Rodgers. 'I don't really think the disguise is going to be doing things for him,' said CB Keisean Nixon, who had a one-year overlap with Rodgers in Green Bay. 'There's nothing he hasn't seen.'"
At 41 years old, Rodgers has seen pretty much every defensive look that a unit could possibly show. Trying to bait him into a bad throw will likely not work on him at this point. That's what both the Steelers and the Packers should realize going into the weekend.
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Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers throws the football during an away game against the Bengals in the 2025 NFL season.
Even Nixon knows that, and there was only one season when he and Rodgers were teammates. It's hard to beat down this Steelers' offense, but it is doable. It just requires total domination across the board. Instead of tricking the future Hall of Famer, the Packers will have to win in the trenches to keep him uncomfortable in the pocket.
For the secondary, zone defense is not enough. Rodgers knows how to find the open spot on the field and hit his man. If opponents play soft, he will audible to a quick out and get DK Metcalf the ball in space, like he has done throughout the 2025 season. Even if defenses get tight coverage on the big wideout, Metcalf can still likely win the 50/50 balls -- one of the primary reasons the Steelers brought him in during the 2025 offseason.
It's not impossible to slow the Steelers down like that, as it happened in Weeks 2 and 3. The problem is that they have found ways to make it much harder on defenses to just straight up win each rep with the jumbo packages and power-run schemes that they have implemented. Trying to dominate like that is still a better option than sitting back and hoping that opponents can bait Rodgers into a bad pass or two.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) during a regular season game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025 in Dublin, Ireland.
The Minnesota Vikings thrive on a defense that causes a ton of confusion while baiting everyone into bad decisions. It did not take long for the Steelers to go up 24-6 against them back in Week 4. Even with questionable fourth quarter coaching, that was too much of a lead for the Vikings to come back from. We'll see if the Packers learn from them in Week 8 or not.
Steelers Are Expected To Get A Big Weapon Back
To make things worse on the Packers' defense, Pittsburgh will most likely get wide receiver Calvin Austin III back on the field after suffering a shoulder injury against the Vikings. All of a sudden, the offense just got faster and twitchier. It will be hard to bait Rodgers when Austin can just run past everyone on a go/seam route. His return will be vital for Pittsburgh.
What do you think about Rodgers being matched up against this Packers defense? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.
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