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Brooke Pryor
PITTSBURGH — William Parker was the primary particular person to greet new Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers as Rodgers pulled into the group facility simply after 7:15 on Tuesday morning.
Sporting a black go well with and shouting by means of a megaphone encased in greenback payments, the Pittsburgh native and longtime Steelers fan referred to as to Rodgers as he exited a grey Vary Rover.
“Aaron, you broke my coronary heart within the Tremendous Bowl, however I forgive you,” Parker stated. Rodgers laughed and waved at Parker, who paced on the sidewalk beside the car parking zone, darting between the bushes and bars of the black fence to get a video of the 41-year outdated quarterback.
Parker, although, wasn’t simply there for Rodgers. The 40-year-old has been greeting gamers at obligatory minicamp for the previous 5 years together with his “cash megaphone” and posters, cheering on the gamers and imploring them to get entangled in the local people.
Although Rodgers is a polarizing determine — one Parker beforehand related to the heartbreak of the Steelers’ loss to the Inexperienced Bay Packers in Tremendous Bowl XLV — Parker was optimistic the quarterback may assist convey a seventh Lombardi Trophy to the group’s trophy case.
“I undoubtedly suppose different gamers are going to play as much as a sure stage as a result of they know they’ve a four-time MVP taking part in for the Steelers,” Parker stated.
Whereas Parker packed up his gear on the sidewalk, contained in the constructing, Rodgers wasn’t ready till a Week 1 showdown with the Jets to set the tone for his Steelers tenure.
It took greater than 70 days between Rodgers’ March go to to the Pittsburgh facility and his signing, however within the interim, he remained in touch with coach Mike Tomlin in addition to offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and basic supervisor Omar Khan. The delay in making his closing determination, Rodgers informed the trio, was tied to issues in his private life. The Steelers “gave him area and respect” throughout that point, one group supply informed ESPN, and it helped endear them to Rodgers.
“The rapport that fell in between me and Mike made it to the place, as I used to be going by means of my private stuff, there wasn’t every other choice for me,” Rodgers stated. “It was right here or not play.”
With the state of affairs round his private issues “improved,” in accordance with Rodgers, because the group wrapped up its second week of OTAs and approached obligatory minicamp, discussions between the 2 sides intensified the morning of June 5, in accordance with one group supply. The Steelers, although optimistic all through the method, lastly started believing that the deal would really come to fruition. By Thursday evening, Rodgers and the Steelers agreed to phrases to finish the prolonged courtship.
“I did not wish to shortchange the blokes and signal however be elsewhere mentally or bodily,” Rodgers stated. “Till I could possibly be right here and be all-in, I wanted to care for my enterprise.”
Shortly after Tomlin opened the group assembly at 8 a.m. Tuesday, Rodgers stood up and relayed the identical sentiment to his new teammates.
“That was the principle message: He is all-in, able to go any more,” middle Zach Frazier stated.
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When Rodgers first arrived on the facility, he requested quarterbacks coach Tom Arth if he may have the playbook printed out. An old-school man, Rodgers stated he prefers taking notes with pencil on paper printouts of the offensive installs reasonably than utilizing a pill. Arth relayed the request to administrative assistant Chrissy Bulger. Previous to Rodgers’ first offensive assembly, Bulger assembled a binder and in addition included a pouch of pencils, erasers and highlighters.
“After the assembly, Aaron got here and requested, ‘Did you say Chrissy put this collectively?'” Arth stated. “He went over and first he thanked her for placing all of it collectively, and he gave her again the pencils and the pen and the highlighters and stated, ‘I already purchased my very own. And I do not need you to must order any extra.’
“It was only a very considerate method to introduce himself to Chrissy and begin constructing that relationship. That undoubtedly stood out to me.”
Although Rodgers signaled to the group he was all-in by signing his contract and reporting to minicamp, he did not instantly tackle a full complement of duties in follow. That was Tomlin’s concept, Rodgers stated, because the quarterback acclimates to the group and the offensive scheme.
“Loads of these items is stuff I’ve performed earlier than, however there’s new phrases and new kinds of movement phrases and completely different stuff,” Rodgers stated. “I am studying. I will undergo the person stuff. I informed Mike, if he needs me to follow, I will follow, however I feel he stated he simply needs me to stay to the person [work] till I’ve acquired the offense down.”
Rodgers largely went fourth behind Mason Rudolph, Skylar Thompson and Will Howard throughout the person quarterback drills in his first two days. Throughout group durations, he watched from behind the play, learning the follow script and chatting with Smith, Arth and offensive assistant Matt Baker.
“I simply wish to be a servant chief right here,” Rodgers stated, “and simply cross on the data that I’ve for 20 years, the expertise and simply attempt to slot in with the blokes, get to know ’em, allow them to get to know me and simply benefit from the course of.”
Between durations in Tuesday’s follow, gamers approached Rodgers with fingers prolonged. Rookie exterior linebacker Jack Sawyer, 18 years Rodgers’ junior, was amongst those that made the midpractice handshake introduction.
“That is one of many quarterbacks you develop up watching and emulating within the entrance yard, throwing the soccer if you’re slightly child,” Sawyer stated. “And now being right here in my rookie yr and having him as my teammate is fairly surreal. And what’s humorous is, my grandma rising up was an enormous Packers fan and loves Aaron Rodgers, so she’s most likely referred to as me 10 occasions within the final week to ask me how he’s and what he’s like.”
Sawyer’s finest pal and Ohio State teammate Howard puzzled the identical factor earlier than he met Rodgers over the weekend. And he was stunned by his first impression of the star quarterback.
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“You’ll suppose he is this big-time well-known man — everyone is aware of Aaron Rodgers, however he is tremendous down-to-earth and in no way what you’d count on,” Howard stated. “And simply tremendous personable within the final day that I have been speaking to him.”
After he completed his first follow, Rodgers stood in entrance of a Steelers-logoed backdrop beside the follow area and addressed a fleet of cameras and a horde of media members, evaluating the whirlwind day to the primary day of faculty.
In actuality, the three-day obligatory minicamp was extra like an prolonged meet-the-teacher evening earlier than the beginning of the college yr. Rodgers will not be again round all of his teammates till the Steelers report back to coaching camp in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, on July 23, and he is not more likely to return to the follow facility till camp breaks in mid-August. Within the interim, although, he has a summer season studying task — his playbook — and can maybe partake in a throwing session or two together with his new teammates.
“I’ve simply acquired to attempt to persuade them to come back out to Malibu [California],” he stated with a sly grin. “It’ll be a troublesome promote, I feel, a troublesome promote.”
NFL reporters Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano contributed to this story.
