If the Pittsburgh Steelers are going to be dangerous offensively in 2025, it will likely come off the backs of Aaron Rodgers and DK Metcalf. The two are by far the members of the offense, and really the only ones, with a long history of success. After a shaky first day, they connected for a touchdown Friday during the Steelers’ second training camp practice at Saint Vincent College.
“That’s what I anticipated,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said with a grin, via 93.7 The Fan on X. “You know, I’m not gonna throw a pep rally. That’s what I expect; that’s why I envisioned all summer.”
The touchdown came during Seven Shots. In that drill, the ball is placed on the 2-yard line, and the offense gets seven plays to try and score as many times as possible. It was Rodgers’ first touchdown pass of camp. He hit Metcalf on an out route against Darius Slay, according to our Alex Kozora.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac took it a step further in his praise for their touchdown, calling it “so artistically perfect it would be shown on every highlight show in the country” if it were in a real game.
Obviously, training camp practices, especially this early, are not end-all and be-all as to how a season is going to go. That said, it is encouraging to see these two start to look a little better together. On Thursday, Rodgers looked to Metcalf on the first play of 11-on-11s, and he was intercepted. Rodgers also missed Metcalf on a short slant route.
It sounds like Rodgers was throwing the ball more today, and things seemed to go well. He had his touchdown to Metcalf and also found Pat Freiermuth in the end zone. Finally, Rodgers completed a deep ball to Calvin Austin III late in practice as well.
There’s still a long way to go, and plenty of time for Rodgers to develop that chemistry with his new teammates. However, the connection between Rodgers and Metcalf is extremely important. Aside from Jonnu Smith, who’s a tight end, the Steelers’ best pass-catching options are Austin and Roman Wilson. Both have potential, but Austin’s never been a WR2 before. And Wilson has yet to see an NFL pass come his way.
Fortunately, there’s plenty of training camp to go. Rodgers and Metcalf will have plenty of time to get to know each other, not just on the field. The two are roommates in Latrobe and share a bathroom. For the Steelers to have any success on offense this year, these two need to understand each other well in just about every aspect. Even though it’s just the second practice of training camp, the chemistry seems to be improving between them.
