Aaron Rodgers threw 49 passes for 253 yards, and the Pittsburgh Steelers needed overtime to beat a team that's now 1-5. Both things are true. The second one is the story. This 26-19 win counts the same as any other in the standings, but a 4-2 record built on afternoons like this one is thinner than it looks.
Rodgers finished 33 of 49 for 253 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. That's 5.2 yards per attempt, a 60.4 adjusted QBR, an 84.8 passer rating. He was sacked five times for 42 yards. Jalon Daniels was sacked five times for 42 yards too, which is the closest either quarterback came to matching the other.
The separation was in what happened after the ball came out. Daniels went 22 of 43 for 164 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions, 3.8 yards per attempt, a 49.0 rating. Bucky Irving carried 19 times for 46 yards, a 2.4 average with a long of 13. Emeka Egbuka saw 16 targets and turned them into 7 catches for 48 yards and a touchdown. Sixteen targets for 48 yards isn't a receiver winning. It's a quarterback with nowhere else to throw.
Rodgers had the same problem and solved it differently. DK Metcalf caught 11 of 15 targets for 93 yards, long of 17. Germie Bernard caught 11 of 12 for 87. Darnell Washington caught 4 for 25 and a score. Nothing downfield, everything on schedule, and against a 1-5 opponent that was enough.
It was enough because Pittsburgh's defense kept teeing off. Jalen Ramsey finished with 10 tackles, two sacks, four tackles for loss and two quarterback hits. Nick Herbig added two sacks and three tackles for loss. Payton Wilson made 11 tackles. One of Daniels' interceptions came back 40 yards, and Tampa Bay spent the afternoon behind the chains.
The end came fast once overtime started. With 3:15 left in the extra period, Rodgers hit Bernard for 6 yards and the touchdown, Chris Boswell's extra point good. Four quarters of grind, one short throw to settle it.
Here's the part I'll argue about: this 4-2 shouldn't be trusted. Rodgers can still operate an offense and the ball came out on time all afternoon, but 49 throws for 253 yards is a team that can't generate explosives, and Pittsburgh won't get five sacks and a rookie's two interceptions handed to it every week. The Steelers are living on margin, and margin is the first thing that goes.
Tampa Bay's 1-5 is real, but the diagnosis matters. Daniels took five sacks and averaged 3.8 yards per attempt, and his most-targeted receiver needed 16 looks to reach 48 yards. The rookie is the least of the problems. Keep starting him.
