As Coach Mike Tomlin said, quarterback Aaron Rodgers is a ‘been-there, done-that guy.’
But it’s also amazing when you see him get the job done.
Rodgers completed 31 of 47 passes for 294 yards and one touchdown pass, but it was his calm persona that led the Steelers on two fourth quarter touchdown drives to secure the win.
“That’s what you want,” said Rodgers. “You want the ball in your hands with 2:20 left and you get a touchdown. That’s exactly what you want. I was calm all day long with the gravity of the game and knowing what was in store for us.
“But I was confident that I was going to play a good game and that I could kind of be the magnetic force out there to keep guys confident and calm. Even in the two-minute, we’re good. We’re going to go down and score, and don’t worry about it, boys.
“That’s part of it being the old guy, having a lot of gray in your beard. They expect things from you, and it’s nice to be able to deliver in moments like that.”
And he delivered, as his teammates knew he would.
It’s part of an overall belief that the team has in Rodgers, and the rest of the leadership.
“I think there is a lot of belief in the leadership of the team,” said Rodgers. “I think an important part of a leadership role is being as even keel as possible and always believing you got a chance.
“But it takes moments like this. Back in 2010 (Green Bay) we’re 9-6 six playing Chicago last game of the year and we eked out a close one in the fourth quarter, 10-3.
“It gave us a little bit of belief, and then we went on a run where we were underdogs I believe the entire playoffs. We were underdogs tonight at home against our division rival. It’s going to give us some belief.
“Now we’re playing the Texans. They’re coming off nine in a row, I think. Who knows if they’ll make us an underdog again at home, but the belief level in the locker room after a win like this is exponentially greater, which is what you want to have going into next week.
“And then obviously we get DK (Metcalf) back.”
With Metcalf out, multiple players stepped up against the Ravens, including Calvin Austin III, who scored the game-winning touchdown on a 26-yard reception after missing the Browns game a week earlier with a hamstring injury.
“It was good to have Cal back,” said Rodgers. “Cal is a great player. He’s one of the sweetest guys on the team and just a guy who really wants to do right all the time.
“I was saying earlier, trying to get him to give me some confidence on what he wanted on the backside, and he finally — on that one he did it again. He wouldn’t kind of put a stamp on something, so I said all right, hitch and go. He ran a good route.
“There were other plays he made that were instinctive and some show up in the stat box and some don’t, but really proud of all our guys and excited to get DK back.”
