(Barry Reeger-Imagn Images)Jon ConahanWed, January 14, 2026 at 2:47 AM UTC·2 min readAaron Rodgers’ season with the Pittsburgh Steelers ended Monday night, but the quarterback didn’t exactly let the moment go without taking a shot at his former team.
After the loss, Rodgers reflected on his career and, intentionally or not, took a subtle shot at the Jets, a franchise that was supposed to be the final chapter of his career. Instead, it turned ugly, and Rodgers didn’t love his time, clearly.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementRodgers didn’t mention the Jets by name, but he didn’t have to.
“I was fortunate to play in an incredible football city for 18 years, and I never took it for granted and enjoyed that time there,” Rodgers started. “And this has been a really beautiful back end to that first 18, to be able to be here for a year.”
“There's only a few really special places in the league that have the tradition and the town and the organization, and I'm thankful to have played for two of them,” he said, per ESPN.
Rodgers spent 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, one of the most storied franchises in league history, before finishing his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, another organization that has plenty on its side.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Jets aren’t near that.
And honestly? He isn’t wrong.
The Jets aren’t a historic franchise in the modern NFL sense and really never have been.
They don’t have sustained success, continuity, or anything like the Steelers and Packers have. Those are just the facts of the situation.
Rodgers arrived in New York expecting structure and a chance to win.
What he got instead was dysfunction, injuries, and everything in between.
For a quarterback who spent nearly two decades in one of the league’s most stable environments, the difference certainly had an impact on his life.
Until the Jets prove otherwise, that label will continue to follow them. Tradition isn’t something that comes overnight and the Steelers know that better than any team in the league.
The uncomfortable truth for Jets fans is that Rodgers’ words reflect how the league still views them. Steelers fans are upset because they didn’t win it all. Imagine being a Jets fan?
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