Aaron Rodgers might have had a tough game against the Patriots with a 20-3 loss, but the offensive line just made it worse for him.

“It was what was that? Second down,” Steelers former linebacker James Harrison said on the Deebo & Joe and Nightcap podcast. “It was incomplete because like Aaron can’t even; he ain’t got the time to get the ball out, bro. Like, we end up getting to a third and seven. We get knocked out of field goal range because we get sacked, fumbled, 40 yards lost.”

Rodgers was sacked four times and lost two fumbles. On the first fumble, Patriots defender Christian Elliss came from behind and hit Rodgers hard, knocking the ball out. The Steelers recovered the ball, but the fumble cost them 36 yards in field position.

Later in the fourth quarter, Christian Barmore knocked the ball out of Rodgers’ hands again. Patriots safety Elijah Ponder picked it up and returned it 19 yards for a touchdown. After this, the Patriots went up 20-3, essentially putting the game away.

Head coach Mike McCarthy also understood the problems with the offensive line and took responsibility.

“We’re a protection-first unit, and that wasn’t the case yesterday,” McCarthy said postgame. “Our quarterback was hit too much yesterday. I think in hindsight you go back and you look: how many days did we line up with the same offensive line? We worked a lot of different combinations. No excuses, but they need continuity.

“They need reps, they need consistency. So the consistency will come through the common concepts.”

However, this isn’t the first time the Steelers’ offensive line has struggled. Though they won their first game against the Falcons with a 20-13 win, their offense struggled to find a rhythm. The team managed only 264 total yards and had trouble staying on the field, converting just three of 13 third-down chances and 0-of-2 on fourth downs.

Pittsburgh also reached the red zone only twice, while Aaron Rodgers was sacked twice. Steelers insider Mark Kaboly pointed out:

“It just seems like it’s a crucial failure along the whole offensive line. It’s everything. It’s not only communication issues, it’s physicality too,” said Kaboly on 93.7 The Fan on Monday morning. “They’re getting pushed around.

“I think you have to blame McCarthy too for just waiting too long to get the group together and make a call on this. I think he was more worried in the preseason about where people fit rather than who his five starters were.”

According to analyst Jon Gruden on Monday, “I don’t know what they did. They moved their right tackle to left tackle, their right guard to left guard. I don’t know who their right tackle is. They’re struggling to protect, struggling to run the ball.”

Aaron Rodgers’ first two games show how the Steelers’ offensive-line issues have affected his performance. Against the Falcons in Week 1, Rodgers completed 24 of 40 passes for 221 yards and one touchdown. In Week 2 against the Patriots, his numbers dropped to 23 completions on 39 attempts for 187 yards, with no touchdowns and one interception, along with 17 pressures.

Along with McCarthy, Rodgers also took the blame.

“As players, we’ve got to take ownership. My performance wasn’t good enough, and a lot of guys on offense weren’t good enough,” Rodgers said after the game.

Rodgers doesn’t want to end his NFL career on such a low note. After signing a one-year deal with the Steelers, Aaron Rodgers spoke to reporters during OTAs on May 20, 2026, and made his plans clear. When asked about his future, Rodgers said, “This is it,” confirming that the 2026 NFL season would be his final season.

Plus, his age might also be one of the reasons behind his struggles to escape pressure like before, because being 42 is not the same as being 24.

But it’s not like the team cannot rely on him. Aaron Rodgers has won the NFL MVP award four times, in 2011, 2014, 2020, and 2021, putting him behind only Peyton Manning’s five MVPs. He also has a Super Bowl title on his résumé, leading the Green Bay Packers to a 31-25 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLV in 2011. Rodgers played a major role in that win and was named Super Bowl MVP.

Now, it will be interesting to see how the team tightens its offensive-line struggles before facing the Bengals.