Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers during a game against the New York Jets om Sept. 7, 2025. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Aaron Rodgers grew up in Northern California, watching Joe Montana and Steve Young lead the San Francisco 49ers. Now the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach, Mike McCarthy was the Niners’ offensive coordinator when they chose Alex Smith over Rodgers in the 2005 NFL Draft.
Go Long’s Tyler Dunne believes that any rift between McCarthy and Rodgers traces back to that decision.
“I think that you’ve gotta take it all the way back to the San Francisco days, really,” Dunne said Monday on 93.7 The Fan. “He holds a grudge like no other. Those aren’t my words. Those are words of players. … It’s part of what makes him special. He can create enemies, be they real or imagined, go out there, he feasts on those enemies — it’s part of what makes Aaron Rodgers an all-time great. And I think that he never forgot that Mike McCarthy preferred Alex Smith over himself as the OC for the 49ers.
“So you could take it all the way back to that point if you want, but like any relationship, they were together a long, long time. There were good days, there were bad days, they won a ring, they won a lot of games. We could pluck a million examples.”
The Packers hired McCarthy after Rodgers’ rookie season despite the 49ers finishing 4-12 and ranking last in the NFL in yards per game (224.2) while McCarthy was designing their attack.
The Steelers, who hired McCarthy this offseason after now-former longtime leader Mike Tomlin walked away, are still waiting on the four-time Associated Press NFL MVP to commit to play for them again next season.
Mentioned In This Article: Aaron Rodgers Mike McCarthy Pittsburgh Steelers San Francisco 49ers Steelers