What may have been the final postgame press conference of Aaron Rodgers' career ended abruptly Monday night.
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The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback cut short his availability after being asked, for the second straight time, about the future of head coach Mike Tomlin following Pittsburgh's 30-6 wild-card loss to the Houston Texans.
"I've answered that a number of times," Rodgers told reporters. "I've talked extensively about how I feel about Mike — and I just did in that f—king answer, so."
Rodgers then stood up and exited, heading into an offseason filled with uncertainty for both himself and the only coach the Steelers have had for the past 19 years.
There has been quiet speculation that Monday could represent a turning point. Tomlin has never posted a losing season, but Pittsburgh's postseason results have become increasingly difficult to ignore. The Steelers have now lost seven straight playoff games and have not won one since Jan. 15, 2017.
Monday's defeat marked the fifth consecutive double-digit playoff loss for the franchise. Six of those seven losses during the drought have come by at least 10 points, with the last three decided by 14 or more.
Earlier this season, reports surfaced that Tomlin could have a high-profile television role waiting should he step away from coaching. A source close to Tomlin told ESPN recently that the idea of stepping aside is at least being considered.
Rodgers, 42, made it clear where he stands.
He pushed back strongly against the idea that Tomlin should be on any sort of hot seat, grouping him with former Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur as examples of how quickly public opinion can turn.
"The way the league is covered now and the way there's snap decisions and validity given to the Twitter experts and all the experts on TV who make it seem like they know what the hell they're talking about, to me that's an absolute joke," Rodgers said. "For either of those two guys to be on the hot seat is really apropos of where we're at as a society and a league."
