Dolphins 2026 LB Explains Why Playing Against Aaron Rodgers Is So Difficult
In May, veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers returned to the Steelers, signing a one-year contract. Since then, fans and analysts have been debating whether he’s still an elite quarterback at age 42. He doesn’t have as much mobility as he used to, which is to be expected at his age. However, Rodgers still has excellent arm talent and an extraordinarily high football IQ. The future Hall of Famer is still a tough opponent.
Miami Dolphins linebacker Jordyn Brooks appeared on Film Watchers’ Tape Talk podcast on Tuesday and explained why playing against the four-time NFL MVP is difficult. Brooks said, “When you’re facing a guy like him, you really don’t wanna listen to him at the line, because he’s super experienced, super smart.” He explained, “He plays a lot of games, and so he might just say something just to throw you off, or he might do something just to throw you off, to where you don’t wanna get too tied in on what he’s talking about, because he’s playing the game. He’s playing the game within the game. He’s playing chess, and so, you just wanna play honest, really, when you’re playing against him because he can throw you off like that. He can check into something at any time. He’s known for doing that.”
The 28-year-old linebacker was asked if Rodgers deliberately tries to throw defenders off. Brooks replied, “During the week, you try to break a team down into the simplest form, so you go back and you watch the old TV copies and listen to the soundbites of what they’re saying pre-snap, and you’re trying to connect the dots, and when dots are just not connecting on what they’re saying, a lot of these words are just dummy words, right, because they know that you’re scouting them.” He said, “An experienced quarterback like him, he’s got dummy words for days, so you don’t wanna play into that too much and start guessing and end up in the wrong spot.” Brooks also remarked, “His superpower is his knowledge of the game.”
Brooks has made it clear that people shouldn’t underestimate Rodgers. The future Hall of Famer’s exceptionally high football IQ gives him a competitive edge. The Super Bowl champion is still an effective quarterback, even though he’s no longer in his prime. It will be interesting to see if he can lead the Steelers to the postseason again and secure their first playoff victory in almost a decade.
