In some methods, the union of Aaron Rodgers and Mike Tomlin was at all times meant to be. As soon as opponents in Tremendous Bowl XLV and each very extremely thought to be future Corridor of Famers, each Rodgers and Tomlin wish to enhance on a few of their latest failures within the league. Ryan Clark believes the pairing would possibly present promise, however not sufficient to erase the rising doubts surrounding their careers.
“After this season, we’re gonna have form of a referendum on what Aaron Rodgers’ profession is and what Mike Tomlin’s profession is,” Clark stated by way of ESPN’s Get Up this morning. “Each of them have such a excessive ground of expertise, of potential, of potential to be the best that’s ever carried out it, in my view, at their particular person positions and locations on their workforce. They usually’ve each underachieved.”
Rodgers is statistically among the best to ever do it. He’s getting into this season with the very best NFL passer ranking of all time and the very best touchdown-to-interception ratio. He has the second-most MVP seasons. But since 2017, he’s solely gained two playoff video games. And he solely has the one Tremendous Bowl look and ring to his identify.
For Tomlin, he has among the best win-loss information of all time for a coach. So long as the Steelers win no less than eight video games this season, he’ll enter the highest 10 for all-time wins as a head coach. With 10 wins, he’ll tie Chuck Noll for ninth place. And there are solely seven individuals forward of him on the listing with a greater win-loss proportion. But since 2016 he has zero playoff wins. For all of the expertise he’s needed to work with, he was carried out going to the Tremendous Bowl by his fourth season as a head coach and has only one ring and two appearances to his identify.
Clark’s shifting view of each Tomlin and Rodgers comes from the very excessive bar he set for them throughout his taking part in days.
“After I walked off of the sphere within the Tremendous Bowl in 2011 in February in Dallas, I knew I had simply performed the very best quarterback I’d ever seen,” Clark stated. “I believed to myself, ‘This dude’s gonna come again and win a number of Tremendous Bowls. He’s gonna be the very best that’s ever performed.’ However he hasn’t even been again to a Tremendous Bowl.
“After I performed with Nick Saban, I used to be 21 and 22 years outdated. And he ready you in a method, motivated you in a method like nobody I’d ever seen till I met Mike Tomlin. I believed to myself, ‘He’s going to finish up being the best coach of all time.’ And neither of these issues occurred.”
Not solely have each underachieved, however they’re coming off a number of the worst seasons of their profession. Rodgers gained 5 video games with the Jets final yr, tore his Achilles the yr earlier than, and had considered one of his worst seasons as a Inexperienced Bay Packer in 2022. Tomlin’s groups have had three- or four-game shedding streaks in December in every of the final two seasons with embarrassing playoff losses in each years. They usually missed the playoffs in 2022 altogether.
The mystique has worn off and their reputations have each taken a success lately. Salvaging that collectively in 2025 looks as if a longshot. If they’re unable to, Clark thinks a referendum is approaching each of their careers within the courtroom of public opinion.
Whereas Rodgers in all probability is out of alternatives to show that round on the finish of his profession, Tomlin nonetheless has time. Clark has acknowledged this opinion a number of instances earlier than, however he thinks it’s time for Tomlin to maneuver on and have his “Andy Reid run” with one other franchise.
