Steelers stars reveal the secrets of Aaron Rodgers' comeback after revenge win over the Jets

Jonnu Smith was attempting to cut a path through the traffic when the Steelers tight end dropped something. 

It was a few minutes after Pittsburgh had stunned the Jets in a brilliant Week 1 tussle at MetLife Stadium. Players were coming to and from the showers while equipment was being packed up and wheeled out to the bus.

It was bedlam and as Smith made his way back to his locker, he lost a piece of jewelry. Thankfully, it was returned a few seconds later and the tight end could continue celebrating Pittsburgh's dramatic 34-32 win.

'We needed that,' Smith told the Daily Mail. 'That was a huge win on the road.'

The chaos in the locker room was in keeping with what had unfolded on the field. This was a bonkers afternoon from start to finish. The Jets and Steelers traded eight touchdowns and no one dropped anything more valuable than Xavier Gipson. 

In the fourth quarter, with the Jets leading by two, Gipson fumbled a kick return. Two plays later, Aaron Rodgers threw his fourth touchdown pass of a remarkable debut. Victory was sealed shortly after by a 60-yard field goal from Chris Boswell.

But make no mistake. This win was orchestrated by Rodgers. The four-time MVP was booed and heckled and abused on his return to the Jets. But the 41-year-old held his nerve.

No one had a better view than Jaylen Warren. The running back lined up alongside Rodgers all afternoon and connected with his quarterback for the Steelers' third touchdown.  

'It's been an honor being by one of the best to ever play the game,' Warren told the Daily Mail. 'It's just a blessing for me to play by him every day... no matter the situation in the game, he always keeps his composure. The way he carries himself, it's contagious.'

Or, as rookie linebacker Jack Sawyer put it: 'He's been even better than we all could have expected.'

To think Rodgers' arrival was ridiculed ahead of the season. Back in May, Steelers legend Terry Bradshaw branded a possible move for the 41-year-old 'a joke.' 'That guy needs to stay in California. Go somewhere and chew on bark and whisper to the gods out there,' the Hall of Fame quarterback added. 

As he left the field on Sunday, Rodgers cupped his ear to the stands and all those who doubted him. He endured a miserable couple of years with the Jets before being released in March. The 41-year-old then contemplated retirement before returning to New York and providing a timely reminder that he remains a potent threat under center. 

'He is an elite quarterback still and it's been great learning from him and being a teammate of his - he is a hell of a person,' Smith said. 'The throws that he's able to make, his poise, his leadership, his knowledge, his IQ... everything.' 

Stiffer tests await the Steelers, starting on Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. But Rodgers' influence had begun to spread long before his debut in New York. 

'It's been a tremendous experience for me,' backup quarterback Skylar Thompson told the Daily Mail. 'But I think I'm speaking for everybody on the team: it's been awesome just to be around him every day.'

Sawyer is still pinching himself. The fourth-round draft pick grew up playing quarterback, impersonating Rodgers on the playground at school. 

'I never thought I'd have the chance to play with him,' Sawyer told the Daily Mail. 'My grandma was a Packers fan (where the quarterback spent 18 seasons) and she was the biggest Aaron Rodgers fan ever. So I watched him a lot with her... Aaron was the man back in the day - and still is.'

After signing a $13.6million deal with the Steelers, the quarterback has surrounded himself with a younger crowd.

'He takes the time to come sit down and talk to all of us rookies. He'll eat lunch with us and just chop it up like we've all been friends forever,' Sawyer explained. 

Rodgers is not there to preach. They will all mess around in the canteen - 'just talking football, talking life,' Sawyer explained.

'He makes you feel welcome. He makes you feel at home - for guys who maybe just gotten signed, or guys who were bouncing around during training camp, he made everyone feel comfortable and and like they were a part of the team.'

That doesn't mean life alongside Rodgers is easy. The quarterback enjoys making his teammates squirm. 

'The biggest thing is... he's always doing things to test guys,' Thompson explains. 'He could signal something that has nothing to do with the play. But he is testing to see if guys know what he's doing... making sure guys are on the same page with him all the time.'

They weren't at first and so teething problems punctuated Rodgers' early weeks in Pittsburgh.  

As training camp developed, however, it all began to make more sense. 'There are a lot of adjustments,' Thompson said. 'Each and every week, we've gotten better at it.. he's very open to spreading his knowledge and sharing things that have helped him get to where he's at. 

'That's been a tremendous experience for our whole team. It's really helped guys learn and grow and get better.'

So perhaps the best of the Steelers is still to come. Few players in the league have seen more football than Rodgers and very few have sharper minds. Time and again, the 41-year-old will spot something that no one else had noticed.

'He's one step ahead most of the time,' Thompson explained. As the quarterback discovered during a recent preseason game.

'He was in my ear all the time,' Thompson recalled. Offering pointers and suggesting ways to counter to defensive ploys that hadn't even happened yet.

'And in those games, those situations arose,' Thompson said. So he followed Rodgers' advice. 'And it worked.'

Former Kansas State quarterback Thompson was selected by the Dolphins in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. He joined the Steelers this year has been struck by Rodgers' 'intensity and focus' regardless of whether the team is in practice or a meeting or doing a walk-through. 'He's locked in all the time,' Thompson said.

But the biggest compliment he can pay his new teammate? 'I'm not afraid to ask him a question, and I don't think anybody is.'

All that knowledge and experience will come in handy as the Steelers attempt to win a playoff game for the first time since 2016. 

'I think he's very misinterpreted from the outside world,' Thompson said. 'I feel like people classify him maybe as not a good teammate... and I have felt the polar opposite. 

'I mean... who am I? And during the preseason, he was in my ear all the time.'

Smith, who combined with Rodgers for a first-half touchdown on Sunday, agreed. 'I've been impressed with the person that he's been. 

'I've always known he's a Hall of Fame player and one of the best to ever do it. And (now) knowing the person, it makes a lot sweeter.'