"Tomlin had previously demonstrated an inexplicable ability to lead teams to wins with terrible offenses. His Steelers had won games with Mason Rudolph and Duck Hodges at quarterback. They had made the playoffs with Kenny Pickett and Mitchell Trubisky as starters. Last season, Tomlin benched Justin Fields for Russell Wilson, who took the team off a cliff in the last four games of the regular season-and the Steelers still finished 10-7."
"Perhaps the vision wasn't the result of a bad burrito, or of taking ayahuasca with Rodgers on one of Rodgers's spiritual quests. Perhaps there was something logical about it. It seemed that way for a while. The Steelers started the season 4-1. Rodgers began the season by laughing at his old team, the Jets, scoring four touchdowns. The Steelers beat the New England Patriots (one of only three teams to do so all season) and then went to Ireland to beat the Minnesota Vikings."
Mike Tomlin maintained a record of winning with subpar offenses and backup quarterbacks, leading the Steelers to victories with Mason Rudolph, Duck Hodges, Kenny Pickett and Mitchell Trubisky. The Steelers had lost six straight playoff games and had not won in the postseason since 2016. The team pursued Aaron Rodgers, a four-time MVP and future Hall of Famer whose career had recent setbacks. Rodgers declined a political role to continue playing and left the Jets without success, creating mutual need: Rodgers needed a job and Tomlin needed a quarterback. Early in the season Rodgers energized the team, producing a 4-1 start with several key wins.
Read at The New Yorker
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