Matt LaFleur Fires Clear Message on Packers Facing Steelers' Aaron Rodgers

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Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur addressed facing quarterback Aaron Rodgers with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 8.

For the second time this season, quarterback Aaron Rodgers will face one of his former teams in Week 8. The Pittsburgh Steelers will host head coach Matt LaFleur and the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night in primetime.

Rodgers spent 18 years with the Packers, including four seasons under LaFleur. During those four years, Rodgers led Green Bay to a 47-18 record.

But LaFleur made it clear Monday that for however big a storyline the Rodgers-Packers matchup is in the media, it’s not what his team is focused on going into Sunday.

“We’re playing the Pittsburgh Steelers, who happen to have Aaron Rodgers,” LaFleur told reporters Monday. “It’s as simple as that. That is for you guys to talk about.

“Granted, I mean, we’ve got a lot of respect and love for Aaron . I mean, what he’s done here. He is a Hall of Famer, and I know our past together, we had a lot of great moments.

“But this game is not about that.”

The Sunday night matchup will be the first time Rodgers squares off against the Packers since the team traded him to the New York Jets in 2023. Rodgers will be attempting to beat the 32nd team in his NFL career.

The four-time MVP has defeated the other 31 teams in the league.

In Week 1, Rodgers played against the Jets, where he spent the first two seasons of his post-Packers career. Rodgers completed 22 of 30 passes for 244 yards and four touchdowns in a 34-32 victory.

Aaron Rodgers Set to Meet Packers for First Time

The Rodgers-Packers showdown probably won’t have the same juice as the season opener when the quarterback met the Jets. The signal-caller still held a lot of animosity for New York because of the way his departure happened during this past offseason.

The Rodgers-Packers split was more amicable and happened two and a half years ago.

Still, Rodgers facing the Packers is a major storyline. Hence, why the game is in primetime.

Rodgers mostly starred in his first primetime affair for the Steelers. In Week 7, he tossed four touchdowns for the second time in black and gold.

However, Rodgers also had two interceptions. Those lost possessions proved costly in a 33-31 defeat to the Cincinnati Bengals.

If Rodgers plays as he did against the Jets, though, the Steelers will probably be in great shape. The 41-year-old led the team to a Week 1 victory at MetLife Stadium. Rodgers threw for 244 yards and four scores despite getting sacked four times.

Rodgers’ Tenure With the Packers

Rodgers won all four of his MVP awards while playing for the Packers. He also led the team to a Super Bowl title, ironically, against the Steelers.

This February will be the 15th anniversary of that Super Bowl. Surely, that will be mentioned during the Steelers-Packers matchup Sunday night.

Rodgers didn’t start for the Packers until his fourth season. But in 18 years with the club, he posted a 147-75-1 record as a starter with 59,055 passing yards and 475 touchdowns.

His 475 passing touchdowns is third most for any quarterback with a single team in NFL history.

If Rodgers and the Steelers defeat the Packers, the signal-caller will have one regular season win against the Indianapolis Colts and, ironically, the Steelers. Rodgers went 1-2 versus Pittsburgh in the regular season during his career.

The Steelers will host the Colts the Sunday after squaring off against the Packers.

Dave Holcomb is a sports reporter covering the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions. Originally from Pittsburgh, Holcomb has covered college and professional sports for outlets including FanSided, Rotowire and Yardbarker. More about Dave Holcomb