Hello and welcome back Pittsburgh Steeler fans to the, for the time being, the last Steelers Optimism post.. I want to say thank you to all who have supported this site and the podcast! This website and the podcast have been fun to make and I hope each of you did find some positive to take away in your fandom.   

Nevertheless, the reason why I need to take a break is Aaron Rodgers. Before I go further, let me say unequivocally that I am still a Steeler fan, and I still hope for their success, and will not actively root against them. I still want to see TJ Watt, Cam Heyward, Mike Tomlin, Pat Freiermuth, Chris Boswell win and have success; however, my engagement and input to my fandom will have to revert to nearly zero.  This is a personal decision of mine that I hope to clearly elaborate on in this explanation. 

First of all, there is the football side of this equation.  The Pittsburgh Steelers have witnessed and been a statistic in the objective reality that is today’s NF.L. In order to win and win in the playoffs the team must have good quarterback play and probably just as, if not more importantly, have mobile quarterback play. The Steelers have recognized that to get back to where they want to be, they need to be more like the Ravens, Bills, Eagles, Chiefs, and Commanders.  This signing of Aaron Rodgers is the exact opposite of what needs to be done.  In addition, Aaron Rodgers football quality, mobility, and production have diminished. His completion percentage, yards, rating, touchdowns have steadily gone down. His interceptions have gone up.  He is recently removed from an Achilles tendon injury. He is undoubtedly the final chapter of his career. This does not move the Steelers closer to playoff wins and another Lombardi trophy. 

Next, there is the football drama layer.  Aaron Rodgers is documented locker room cancer.  He is a bad teammate.  He is a consistent dissenting voice that will do everything possible to shift the blame.  He shows blatant disrespect for his teammates, fans, and coaches.  He continuously believes he is omniscient and righteous in his beliefs. Aaron Rodgers has never been, and never will be a representative of, advocate for, or shining emblem of anything except Aaron Rodgers.  His brand will not change overnight to become concerned about the Pittsburgh Steelers.  He will always only ever be concerned with Aaron Rodgers. These types of players have universally been run out of Pittsburgh, not courted to come in and then signed with full knowledge of their selfishness. 

Lastly, there is the fundamental reason for my taking a step away.  I have no patience for, and refuse to turn a blind eye away from a proud vaccination skeptic, election denier, do your own research, conspiracy theorist, crackpot. I will not choose to support a team and player that are so dangerous to and against my fundamental values.  As a physician, scientist, and citizen of this country and world, I cannot invest my precious resources into this team if Aaron Rodgers is the quarterback. Aaron Rodgers, who went to California University but did not earn a degree, believes he knows better than me when it comes to public health, vaccinations, western medicine, and science.  And because his scrambled internet brain believes these things, he takes it to the next level with his given podium and mouthpiece.  He is one of the most popular players in the most popular sport in this country. And he knows it.  The danger he propagated with both his words and actions during the COVID pandemic is unforgivable. His continued spewing of conspiracy theories and amplification of hate speech is unforgivable. Therefore, very simply, I will not sacrifice my resources of time, energy, money, and optimism to prop up this delusional, self absorbed, crackpot. I think we as fans and citizens must, at some point, ask ourselves at what cost are we willing to accept the awful in exchange for sport glory?  At what cost should a Lombardi trophy be accepted?  At what cost should a favorable tax plan be accepted? At what cost should winning an election be deemed ok? Are we going to continue to accept the hate, the bigotry, the demonization and deportation of our neighbors, the incompetence to have power just to win NFL games? A perfect example that I use to further solidify this point is the state of West Virginia University Basketball.  Two years ago Bob Huggins resigned in disgrace.  This led to our University suffering through two years of limbo and mediocrity.  Now, we are in our second year of having to build from scratch with no players, no coach, and no commits. We are working through that with our new coach, but it is a struggle.  This is a terrible place to be as a die hard West Virginia fan; however, I personally embrace this state of affairs and am glad the former WVU President, Board of Directors, and Athletic Department acted with their values.  We did not allow ourselves to have a coach who was an alcoholic, poor role model, and blatant homophobe be the face of our program.  Despite his objective success in recruiting, fund raising, and winning, we chose dark times over associating with his values.  So the question for Steeler fans is what should we invest in a team that pays, respects, and suits up a guy like Aaron Rodgers? How about a team that has players who want Donald Trump to be an “honorary Steeler?” I have my answer.

As I mentioned before, while I will hope for their success, I will not be investing my time, energy, money, and care into them. Every year I take my dad and brothers to a game at Acrisure Stadium.  I splurge on the club seats, Gateway Clipper rides, parking, refreshments, 50/50, and merchandise.  While Aaron Rodgers is our quarterback, I will tally all of this up and write a check for that amount to a vaccine research organization. As a podcaster and blogger for Steeler content, I have in years past spent most of my Sundays watching football.   Those hours will now be spent with my family, daughters, volunteering, and reading.  While Aaron Rodgers is our quarterback, I will utilize very little of my time, energy, creative thinking, money, and care towards the Pittsburgh Steelers.  If they have tremendous success and win the Super Bowl this year, I will celebrate that accomplishment for Mike Tomlin, TJ Watt, Cam Heyward, Chris Boswell etc; but I will be sad that this was the year I did not take my dad to watch the Super Bowl in person.  

I am in no way telling any fan what to do.  I am not even suggesting anyone reading this or listening to this podcast do as I do.  I am simply explaining why there will not be a Steelers Optimism website or podcast this season. Nor will there be during any season where Aaron Rodgers is the quarterback. 

Thank you all again and Go Steelers.