What a fitting touch to the locker room celebration that came with the Pittsburgh Steelers winning their season opener before the home crowd at Acrisure Stadium.
Aaron Rodgers presented Mike McCarthy with a game ball.
It had been a long time coming. McCarthy and Rodgers hadn’t won a game together since the 2018 season with the Green Bay Packers. And McCarthy, 62, is the Pittsburgh native starting on the right foot in his dream job with the franchise he grew up cheering for.
“Obviously, a special moment,” McCarthy said during his postgame news conference after the 20-13 victory against the Falcons. “Really appreciate Aaron and the kind words.”
McCarthy seemed a bit embarrassed as he reflected, admitting that so much emotion was attached to the buildup
toward his debut as Steelers coach.
Enough, already, he added in so many words.
“It’s time to move on and get team victories from here,” he said.
Actually, the Steelers produced quite the team effort in outlast an undermanned Falcons team that was forced to start No. 3 quarterback Cooper Rush. The game-winning points didn’t come from the offense that McCarthy and Rodgers are famous for. They came from edge rusher T.J. Watt, who raced 35 yards with a pick-six in the fourth quarter to go with his two sacks.
Regardless, it happened.
“It’s always special when it’s the first one in a place,” Rodgers said, “and extra special when it’s the team you grew up cheering for.”
If not for McCarthy coming home – he grew up in the Greenfield neighborhood that can be seen from the Steelers’ headquarters on the South Side and has been living temporarily in his parents’ home – Rodgers probably wouldn’t still be in the ‘Burgh for his Last Ride.
After Mike Tomlin resigned in January, Rodgers thought he was probably one-and-done as a Steeler. The hiring of McCarthy, though, made it possible. And McCarthy made no bones about the fact that he wanted Rodgers, 42, back for a 22nd NFL season.
“I felt physically, I could do it,” Rodgers told me during a training camp interview. “But the familiarity with Mike, in my mind, I said, ‘I’m not going to come back and learn another new offense. I did that last year and it’s an ordeal."
Week 1 demonstrated some of the work ahead. McCarthy wasn’t pleased with the rushing attack he needs to create balance – the Steelers rushed 21 times for 58 yards with a 2.8 average carry. Yet even with some of the disconnections on Sunday, watching Rodgers (24-for-40, 221 yards, 1 TD, 0 INTs, 83.4 passer rating) work the middle of the field marked a contrast to the scheme run last year by former coordinator Arthur Smith. There were slants, in routes, tight end seams and more.
“Yeah, just a different scheme, man,” Rodgers said of the differences, then reminiscing on the Green Bay years and naming an array of targets that made it work.
Of course, the X-factor is the bond between coach and quarterback, built over 13 years and with a Super Bowl credit on their resumes. Rodgers knows the heart of his coach and his philosophies haven’t changed. But given some of the friction that existed at the end of their tenure in Green Bay unfolded, time has made a difference that matters about now.
“I’d say he’s a little more settled and so am I, you know,” Rodgers told USA TODAY Sports. “Mike’s got a fiery passion about the game. Maybe it’s raising three daughters now. He’s had a second family with two younger daughters with Jess. And I think he learned probably a lot of patience with that, that he’s brought over to the field, to the meeting rooms.
“But you know, I’m a lot more settled as well. Because I’m still a fiery competitor, he’s still fiery, competitive and passionate, but I think in the communication department we’re both better at delivering the message we want without the need to lose our cool.”
Which sounds like both Rodgers and McCarthy need each other if they will recreate their magic.
Two-minute drill
- Did any team make a bigger Week 1 statement than the Bears? The 59-37 rout at Carolina – where the teams combined for 96 points to set an opening-week record – brought to life a lofty goal Chicago coach Ben Johnson has amplified. Johnson has made no bones about the fact that, in addition to winning Super Bowl 61, he wants to set the NFL scoring record established by a Peyton Manning-armed Broncos squad that put up 606 points in 2013. Well, after Week 1, the Bears (552 yards, 8 TDs, 219 rushing yards, 2 100-yard rushers) are on pace for 1,003 points. Reiterated Johnson: “We didn’t get into this profession trying to be mediocre or average.”
- It’s always a risk to take points off the board. Especially on the road in the fourth quarter. Packers coach Matt LaFleur learned that the hard way after taking a penalty on Trey Smack’s 40-yard field goal. Leading 22-17, LaFleur opted for fourth-and-a-long-one rather an eight-point lead early in the final stanza. Bad move. Jordan Love was stuffed and the game’s momentum changed on a dime. The Vikings scored 22 unanswered points. Oops.
- The “legendary” Houston Texans met their match against an explosive Buffalo offense triggered by superhero quarterback Josh Allen, who passed for 334 yards and 2 TDs and rushed for 2 TDs. Yet for all the offense in a 36-31 thriller that was the NFL’s Game of the Week, it was the Bills’ not-so-legendary defense that sealed the victory with two sacks on the final three plays after Houston drove to set up first-and-goal from the 9 – the first one produced by 6-foot, 7-inch, 331-pound D-tackle Deone Walker, who used a nifty shimmy shake to clear his path to C.J. Stroud.
- New coaches were 6-4 in their debut contests, with none scoring a more unexpected victory than the one Arizona’s Mike LaFleur hung on the Chargers. The 26-14 verdict snapped the franchise’s streak of eight consecutive Week 1 losses, with LaFleur becoming the first full-time Cards coach to win his debut since Don Coryell in 1973. And take a bow, John Harbaugh, christening the new era for the Giants by smacking down the division-rival Dallas Cowboys.
- “Sonic and Knuckles” were broken up as the NFL’s top 1-2 running back tandem when the Lions traded David Montgomery to the Texas. Yet separation may make them even more lethal. Jahmyr Gibbs had 186 yards from scrimmage (156 rushing, 5.4 per carry) with 2 TDs to aid Detroit’s survival vs. New Orleans while Montgomery scored 3 TDs (79 total yards) in his Houston debut.
- The Shedeur Sanders Countdown Clock ticks on. The Browns were never competitive at Jacksonville, with Deshaun Watson quarterbacking an offense that went 1-for-8 on third downs. With Jacksonville building a 31-0 lead early in the second half, conditions may have been ripe for coach Todd Monken to insert Sanders for a potential spark or just plain old reps. Not so. Sanders didn’t play a single snap, leaving Watson to fire a 46-yard TD pass to David Boston in garbage time.
What it is, and what it should be
Last season, just 11 quarterbacks started all 17 regular season games. According to research from my USA TODAY Sports colleague, Nate Davis, a total of 62 quarterbacks took snaps in games during the 2025 campaign – and that’s not counting Joe Flacco’s snaps for two teams or Jarrett Stidham starting for the Broncos in the AFC title game.
Moral of the story: Everybody needs a good backup quarterback. Or three.
And Week 1 reminded us of that.
Already, the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks are forced to roll with Drew Lock after Sam Darnold was knocked out with a hip injury on just his fifth snap against the Patriots. Seattle is relieved that Darnold didn’t suffer a season-ending fractured hip socket, but he is expected to miss time with what Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer reported as a tendon injury to his glute. The Seahawks are seeking multiple medical opinions to determine the extent and rehab plan.
The Vikings, meanwhile, won with Carson Wentz coming off the bench (19-of-23, 133 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 123.5 passer rating) after Kyler Murray was knocked out in the first quarter with a concussion. That Murray was injured as he slid to the turf by Packers safety Jevon Bullard – flagged for unnecessary roughness – will undoubtedly trigger a review under the NFL’s new three-strikes-and-out policy that cracks down on flagrant fouls.
Then there are the Falcons, still waiting for former starter Michael Penix, Jr. to return from the partially torn ACL that ended his 2025 season. Tua Tagovailoa was expected to open the season at Pittsburgh as the starter, but after suffering an oblique injury during warmups in Thursday’s practice (which follows the back injury that forced him to sit out drills during the first week of training camp), new coach Kevin Stefanski was forced to start No. 3 quarterback Cooper Rush.
Even that plan became sketchy when Rush suffered back spasms on Saturday morning. Rush recovered in time to play a full game, but the Falcons were that close to tapping undrafted rookie Jack Strand. The hope now is that Penix, cleared to fully participate in practices, will make his return in the home opener against Carolina on Sunday.
We saw a lot of snaps for backup quarterbacks last season. At this rate, we could see even more for NFL teams this season.
Worst loss
Sorry, Chargers. The meltdown that wiped out a ton of Survivor Pool entries – the Cardinals were a whopping 9 ½-point underdogs – was one-upped by your SoFi Stadium mates. The Super Bowl-favorite L.A. Rams had an even tougher setback in Australia. And they lost in more ways than one. Three days after the Rams were clobbered 27-7 by the dreaded NFC-West rival 49ers came the news that Myles Garrett – the record-setting defensive end obtained from the Browns in the blockbuster offseason trade – will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and is headed for IR. This delays the much-anticipated arrangement with three-time Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald, enticed out of retirement for the chance to join forces with Garrett. Now he has to wait with Garrett missing at least four weeks as he recovers. A loss on top of a loss.
Worst win
The Lions blew a 21-point lead at home before surviving 31-30 in overtime against the Saints when they broke up a two-point conversion. It represented shades from last season when Detroit squandered opportunities in several losses on the way to finishing last in the NFC North. And had it not been for a controversial instant replay ruling that wiped out an apparent scoop-and-score touchdown for the Saints, it might have been settled before OT. According to the letter of the NFL law, New Orleans wasn’t robbed (again) by the replay ruling as Detroit quarterback Jared Goff had begun his throwing motion when hit by Chase Young, which set up the apparent TD return by Jonas Sanker. To the naked eye, though, it was a modern-day repeat of The Tuck Rule. Are you to believe your lying eyes or the NFL rulebook?
The most intriguing reason to watch Monday Night Football
Patrick Mahomes. Who else? The Chiefs star is set to make his return at Arrowhead Stadium from the torn ACL and LCL in his left knee in a showdown against the team that last season snapped Kansas City’s streak of nine consecutive A-West titles, the Denver Broncos. That Mahomes, 30, is back already is more impressive when considering he was injured in mid-December. Consider that Falcons quarterback Michael Penix, Jr., suffered his partially torn ACL in mid-November and Mahomes’ timeline carries an exclamation point. The three-time Super Bowl MVP insists that he won’t change his style of play, which includes improvising to make magical throws. We’ll see.
For one thing, beyond extending plays, Mahomes doesn’t need to run as much as he did last year (422 yards on 64 rushes). The presence of Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III should help with that. Regardless, the return is wrapped with another matchup against Denver – which not only brings one of the NFL’s best defenses and a relentless pass rush but also its own quarterback, Bo Nix, coming off two surgeries for a fractured ankle. The first time Nix got the best of of Mahomes, the Chiefs quarterback told the upstart that he expected they would have many more duels. Well, the next one comes in a few hours.
What I’m looking forward to in Week 2
Lions at Bills. The new Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, NY – across the street from the old Highmark – gets its regular-season christening on Thursday night. Yeah, they’ve come a long way from War Memorial Stadium, a.k.a The Rockpile. Never mind Buffalo winters, this place has real grass. Kudos to Buffalo’s ownership for that. It’s the least they could do, given the significant taxpayer tab for the $2.2 billion palace. As for the game-within-the-game, maybe a shootout looms with Detroit bringing one of the NFL’s most explosive offense and Bills quarterback Josh Allen, fresh off a 300-yard game in Week 1, being, well, Josh Allen. Then there are the new tailgating rules that may take some getting used to – or not – for the raucous Bills Mafia. Regardless, the environment will be lit.
Best thing I saw online this week
No Free Lunch with Ndamukong Suh. There was once a time when Suh was considered – fair or not – one of the NFL’s most notorious baddies as a wrecking ball in the trenches who might happen to draw a flag for a nasty hit on your quarterback. Yet on his YouTube podcast, the former D-lineman is a voice of reason when talking finances. No surprise here. Despite his rep, Suh always struck me as sharp and thoughtful when it came to NFL business matters, and rather polite, too. His recent podcast should be must-see viewing for new NFL players as he breaks down the challenges – and a few realities – facing a new crop making the leap from the college campus to the Not-For-Long NFL ecosystem.
Closing Bell
The Titans plans to induct Chris Johnson into their Ring of Honor during halftime of their opener against the Jets were postponed due to a reason that resonates even more than remarkable football achievements that include a 2,000-yard rushing season in 2009.
Real life.
Johnson, who revealed on June 29 that he is suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), was unable to travel to Nashville to attend the ceremony due to “unforeseen circumstances,” the team said in a statement released on Friday.
It is a sobering reminder of the condition that Johnson, 40, grapples with and its connection to playing football. Although there is apparently no scientific confirmation that football caused Johnson’s condition, he seemingly connected the dots and publicly acknowledged as much in a letter to his four children posted last week in The Players’ Tribune.
“I’ve seen a lot of neurologists at this point and been to basically every major ALS clinic in the country, and in my experience, as soon as you say you played football it’s like, 'Ahh, OK,'" Johnson wrote. "Almost like an understanding, you know? I read one study, and from my understanding, it found that former NFL players were nearly four times as likely to develop and pass away from ALS compared with the U.S. male population overall. That was a shock.”
Godspeed, Chris Johnson. Prayers for you, your wife Brittany and the rest of your family and loved ones.
Follow Bell on X: @JarrettBell
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Monday Morning JB: Bears' statement and more that stood out in NFL Week 1
