“Charles is the best player I played with, and he gave me fits on the scout team every week (with the Packers).” In 2022, Aaron Rodgers said this about his ex-teammate and Hall of Famer, Charles Woodson. The two played together for five seasons with Rodgers as the starting quarterback. The duo helped the Green Bay Packers win a Super Bowl on February 6, 2011. However, many still think that Rodgers should have won more Super Bowls. But why couldn’t he, despite having the talent? Well, Woodson revealed his reasoning.

On the January 9th episode of Get Got Pod with Marshawn Lynch & Mike Robinson, Charles Woodson joined the podcast to talk about his time in the NFL, the Packers, and Aaron Rodgers. During the discussion, Lynch expressed that Rodgers should have more than one Super Bowl because of his talent. But Woodson revealed why even talented quarterbacks fail to get the rings.

Aaron Rodgers’ former teammate said, “I think they definitely let an opportunity slip away coming to y’all.” Explaining his point, Charles Woodson recalled a particular playoff game where the Packers had chances to score touchdowns but settled for field goals instead. He highlighted how crucial it was for the Packers to capitalize on those moments, as they were in the lead but allowed their opponents to come back.

There was another point that Woodson tried to point out, i.e. the leadership. For this, he shared a personal story about wanting to return to Green Bay but being turned down as the team chose to go with younger players. The former Packers’ safety said, “I remember, I always feel like coz I tried to go back to Green Bay. I came back to Oakland, they brought Julius Peppers in…..I called Ted and I called Mike and I said, ‘hey man, what y’all think about bringing me back’ and they were like ‘oh no, we just gonna go with the young fellas’.”

According to Woodson, such decisions also got in the way of the Packers’ success. For instance, the former NFLer also emphasized a pivotal play where Morgan Burnett intercepted a pass but chose to go down instead of advancing. Woodson felt that under his leadership Burnett wouldn’t have taken that route. Furthermore, Aaron Rodgers’s former teammate believes the Packers faced tough opponents who had the most formidable defenses in the league.

Concluding his points, the 48-year-old surmised that sometimes, despite having talent and opportunities, teams can run into others that are just too strong. Just like all those that prevented Aaron Rodgers from securing another ring. Speaking of which, the Cowboys too found too many teams too strong for them this season. And the result? Mike McCarthy’s exit.

Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy’s futures in the air

There is no question about Mike McCarthy’s coaching pedigree. He is, in some ways, the Aaron Rodgers of the coaching community. Despite an excellent overall results record, his talent has failed to achieve its zenith. In his 18 seasons as head coach (13 with the Packers and 5 with the Cowboys), he has a .608 win rate. He has led his teams to the post-season in 12 of those seasons, i.e. 2 out of every 3 seasons. Yet he has failed to even make it to the Super Bowl on more than one occasion. This has been true of his tenure with Dallas as well. Under his guidance, they made it to the playoffs in three consecutive years, yet never made it past the divisional round. Without the solace of even a single post-season game this year, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has made the call to let McCarthy go.

A quote from Cowboys owner Jerry Jones summarises the situation of talented players and coaches falling short of that crowning glory. He said, “Throughout Mike McCarthy’s tenure here, including the last several weeks, I have been very complimentary of the job he has done. That has applied to our record over that time period, our team unity and culture, Mike’s qualifications and track record of success, and on a personal level as a tremendous human being.” It would have been a touching tribute if only it weren’t an addendum to Jones’ sacking of its subject.

Meanwhile, multiple reports suggest the Jets are likely to move on from Aaron Rodgers this winter. The report also suggests that the 41-year-old will either retire or sign a short-term deal with the Steelers to add one final chapter to his career. Funnily enough, there is some speculation over Mike Tomlin‘s job security too following the Steelers’ exit from the wild card round. Mike McCarthy’s tenure with the Cowboys has just ended. Could we see the Super Bowl-winning duo reunite in Pittsburgh?

To those unaware, Aaron Rodgers and Charles Woodson won that Super Bowl with McCarthy as the head coach. Just like Rodgers, it’s McCarthy’s only ring. But given that the Steelers operate differently from most when it comes to their head coaching job, it might be futile speculation. Pittsburgh has only hired 3 head coaches since 1969. Mike Tomlin has held the post since 2007 and it’s unlikely that the Steelers will have a knee-jerk reaction to the noise following their wild card exit. Meanwhile, the Chicago Bears are said to have serious interest in McCarthy now that he’s available.

Let’s see where all this major experience and talent lands up next season!