(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) holds his arm after a hit by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

CHICAGO (AP) — Aaron Rodgers once famously turned to the crowd at Soldier Field and screamed that he still owns the Bears. No one would have argued back then.

Rodgers would love a chance to show it’s still true, though it’s not clear if he’ll get the opportunity when the Pittsburgh Steelers visit Chicago on Sunday.

The four-time MVP broke his left wrist in last week’s 32-14 win over Cincinnati, throwing his status for what could be his final game against the franchise he has tortured into question.

Rodgers was optimistic but far from certain that he would be able to play through the injury to his nonthrowing hand. It depends on if he feels he can protect himself and handle the ball the way he normally does.

Either way, Rodgers said this week he hopes Bears fans can let “bygones be bygones.” And, with a laugh, he added: “Maybe, I can, I guess.”

Rodgers, as he has done in the past, praised Chicago. He mentioned growing up a fan of Michael Jordan and the Bulls and watching Cubs games on WGN.

“They got great sports, man,” he said.

Rodgers is 25-5 against Chicago, counting the playoffs. If he is unavailable, the AFC North-leading Steelers (6-4) will go with Mason Rudolph. The veteran returned to Pittsburgh for a second stint when he signed a two-year deal in March and came through after Rodgers exited last week. He completed 12 of 16 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown, helping the Steelers win for the second time in three games and keep a tenuous grip on first place ahead of Baltimore.

Narrow escapes

The NFC North-leading Bears (7-3) have won seven of eight and lead Green Bay (6-3-1) by the slimmest of margins. They have five wins this season after trailing in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter, including the past three games.

They squeezed out a 19-17 victory at Minnesota last week when Devin Duvernay returned a kickoff 56 yards to set up a 48-yard field goal by Cairo Santos as time expired. The Vikings had scored a touchdown with 50 seconds remaining.

“I think we feel good with where we’re at,” quarterback Caleb Williams said. “But you also do understand that things can turn. We have a whole season left basically with seven games left. And so, things can still turn fast in those ways.”

Monitoring a ‘Magician’

The Steelers are well-versed in the problems created by a team whose quarterback likes to move around. They can thank years and years of chasing Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson.

Williams, however, presents a different challenge. Where Jackson typically takes off the second he tucks the ball under his arm, the slippery Williams is more likely to scramble around in the backfield while hoping something develops downfield.

“He’s kind of like a little magician back there, being able to get out of tough jams and (he’s) got a hell of an arm,” Steelers inside linebacker Patrick Queen said. “So you definitely got to respect the guy. Even with him being young, he’s been playing at a high level.”

The Steelers can try to take solace in this: they’re 5-4 against Jackson, one of the few teams the two-time MVP has a losing record against.

Pick it

A two-time All-Pro, Bears safety Kevin Byard was no stranger to picking off passes. He just hadn’t done it as much as he would have liked the past few seasons.

Byard is making up for it with a league-leading five interceptions after combining for two the previous two years with Tennessee, Philadelphia and Chicago. He had one last year in his first season with the Bears.

“I just think it’s the (opportunities),” said Byard, who has 34 interceptions in 10 seasons. “Honestly, even last year. I feel like I dropped two. I felt like I should have had multi-interceptions last year as well.”

With Nahshon Wright and Tremaine Edmunds tied for second with Jacksonville’s Devin Lloyd with four, the Bears have three of the NFL’s top four leaders in interceptions.

‘Kenny G’ hits the right notes

The Steelers signed running back Jaylen Warren to a modest extension before the season began, and while the former undrafted rookie free agent has been effective with the ball in his hands, he’s also been knocked around a bit.

Enter Kenneth Gainwell. The former Philadelphia Eagle began the season as a complementary piece but has shown a couple of things that Warren has not. He’s been durable, and he’s figured out a way to get to the end zone.

Gainwell had 105 total yards last week against the Bengals and caught two touchdown passes. The Steelers opted to roll with him late even though doctors had cleared Warren to return after tweaking his right knee in the third quarter.

One-sided

Though Rodgers has dominated Chicago, the Bears have done the same against the Steelers.

They lead the series 22-8-1 and are 14-1 at home, including a pair of wins over the combined 1943 Philadelphia-Pittsburgh and 1944 Chicago Cardinals-Pittsburgh teams. The Steelers’ lone victory in Chicago was in 1995. Pittsburgh’s record against the Bears is the franchise’s worst against any NFL team still in existence.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Pirates’ Jack Suwinski (65) celebrates with teammates after hitting a home run against the San Francisco Giants during the seventh inning of a baseball game in San Francisco, Monday, May 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) According to a source, the Pittsburgh Pirates and outfielder Jack Suwinski have recently agreed to a contract of one year which is worth $1.25 million and the Buccos and right-handed reliever pitcher Yohan Ramírez have recently agreed to a contract of one year worth $825,000. These contracts will make both Suwinski and Ramírez avoid arbitration to stay on the Pirates roster.

(Photo of Geneva College Head Football Coach Geno DeMarco Courtesy of Amanda Paulovich Photography)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver Falls, PA) Geneva College head football coach Geno DeMarco, the longest tenured college football coach at any level, was recently honored as the 2025 Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Coach of the Year after leading the 6-4 Golden Tornadoes to the postseason for the first time since 2009. Tomorrow’s bowl game for Geneva against SUNY Brockport of Brockport, New York in Rochester, New York at noon will be the final game for DeMarco in his 33rd season. Twelve Golden Tornadoes were also recently named All-PAC selections, which is the second most since Geneva joined the PAC in 2011.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – The Church Pews bunker on the fairway of the third hole at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pa. is shown in a Sept. 21, 2015, file photo. The course in Oakmont, Pa., already has hosted a record nine U.S. Opens. It now will be an anchor site for U.S. Opens and will host three more through 2049. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) A recent study from Breakfast Balls Golf gives Pennsylvania a ranking of fourth in the United States of America for the best state to play golf. According to the study, Pennsylvania has 674 golf courses, 353 driving ranges, and four platinum golf clubs. The data from this study involved the surrounding number of courses for golf, number of platinum golf clubs and the number of driving ranges in each state, among other metrics. California, Florida and New York are the only states in the country that have more platinum golf clubs than Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania was also the state that hosted the 2025 U.S Open golf tournament of the PGA Tour at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, outside of Pittsburgh, from June 12th-15th, 2025. Oakmont, as well as Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Pennsylvania, outside of Philadelphia, are also featured inside the top ten of a list from GolfDigest of their one-hundred greatest golf courses in the United States of America, with Oakmont at #5 and Merion Golf Club East at #6. The only states that ranked higher than Pennsylvania in this Breakfast Balls Golf study for the best state for golf were South Carolina, Florida and Wyoming.

(Photo Courtesy of Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC, Posted on Facebook on November 17th, 2025)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The Pittsburgh Riverhounds Soccer Club will play against FC Tulsa at ONEOK Field in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Saturday, November 22nd at noon for the 2025 United Soccer League (USL) Championship. This is the first time in the twenty-six-year history of the Riverhounds that they will play in the USL Championship game. The Riverhounds defeated Rhode Island FC 1-0 in the 2025 USL Eastern Conference Final at Highmark Stadium in Pittsburgh on November 15th, 2025.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) holds his arm after a hit by the Cincinnati Bengals during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers is optimistic but hardly certain his broken left wrist will be good enough for him to play on Sunday when Pittsburgh visits Chicago.

There’s no question how the rest of him feels about the potential to get a chance to face the Bears one last time.

The 41-year-old four-time MVP clashed memorably for so long with Chicago during his long run in Green Bay earlier in his career.

“There’s incentive for every opponent, but I have enjoyed many a Sunday and Monday and many Thursdays in that city,” Rodgers said. “It’s a great sports town, phenomenal sports fans, and a great place to play.”

Particularly if you win there as much as Rodgers has through the years.

Rodgers is 11-1 at Soldier Field, and permanently etched his name into the lore of the oldest rivalry in the NFL when he memorably told the home crowd during a trip to Chicago in 2021 that he “owned” one of the league’s marquee franchises.

“I feel like we can let bygones be bygones, maybe,” Rodgers said with a smile, then later added, “I hope those fans can put that behind them. I’m sure they can’t. Don’t expect them to.”

There’s a chance Rodgers returns to practice on Thursday wearing a protective brace on the wrist he broke late in the first half of last Sunday’s 32-14 win over Cincinnati. Rodgers was rolling to his left and jumped to heave a pass to the back of the end zone, then landed awkwardly on the wrist of his non-throwing hand.

Mason Rudolph, who was excellent in the second half against the Bengals, will get the nod if Rodgers is unavailable, though it seems the Steelers will exhaust every avenue to make sure that Rodgers can go.

Rodgers said the primary issue will be safety. If he can protect himself and handle the ball normally, he’ll likely be given the OK. He could return to practice as early as Thursday, though Steelers coach Mike Tomlin pointed to Friday as a pivotal day in deciding who will be under center when the Steelers (6-4) try to win in Chicago for just the second time in franchise history.

Rudolph is preparing to be ready if called on, but knows anything can happen. He has been spectacular in his four extended appearances for Pittsburgh, posting a quarterback rating of around 120 during a run that started with engineering three straight victories to get the Steelers into the 2023 playoffs, then a steady two quarters against the Bengals.

“I think I got a lot of different experiences to draw from,” Rudolph said. “Whether you find out the day before the game, or you’re thrown into the game first quarter or in the second half or you get the whole week of reps. So you definitely draw from those experiences.”

The environment in the quarterback room is a bit more relaxed than it was during Rudolph’s first stint with the team from 2018-23. Rodgers and Rudolph both good-naturedly referred to each other as “trolls” on Wednesday.

Rodgers tweaked Rudolph for the lengthy list of “dad jokes” he tries to reel off during a meeting. Rudolph called it one of the “most fun” groups of quarterbacks he’s been around, even if it’s still a little surreal that he’s sharing it with a future Hall of Famer.

When Rudolph and the victorious Steelers made their way to the locker room on Sunday, Rodgers was waiting outside to congratulate him.

“I think if the 14-year-old me knew that I was getting a nice dab from A-Rod after a game, that would be pretty darn exciting,” Rudolph said.

Still, Rudolph knows that Sunday holds special significance for Rodgers beyond the opportunity for Pittsburgh to hold onto its slim lead over Baltimore in the AFC North.

“I think he made the comment early on that there’s certain games that mean a lot and just games you circle, and this was one of them,” Rudolph said. “So I understand his motivation to come back and take the field against an old rival.”

(Photo Courtesy of Getty Images and Focus on Sport, JANUARY 20: American professional football player L.C. Greenwood #68 of the Pittsburgh Steelers during Super Bowl XIV against the Los Angeles Rams at the Rose Bowl on January 20, 1980 in Pasadena, California. The Steelers defeated the Rams 31-19. (Photo by Focus On Sport/Getty Images)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Pittsburgh, PA) The late Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman L.C. Greenwood has now made it to the semi-finals for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026 in the seniors category after a recent round of voting from people from the museum located in Canton, Ohio. Greenwood and eight others have reached the semi-finals for this honor as the next vote will pick three finalists for next year’s class. Greenwood was a four-time Super Bowl Champion who played all thirteen of his NFL seasons with the Steelers.     

(Photo of Nicholas Ciriello Courtesy of Amanda Paulovich Photography)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver Falls, PA) Geneva College senior defensive linebacker Nicholas Ciriello earned his spot on the D3 Football.com Team of the Week recently for the first-time ever after his performance in a game on Saturday against Case Western Reserve University that took place in Cleveland, Ohio. This list of players online gives recognition to the top NCAA Division III football players across the country every week. Ciriello finished Geneva’s 43-16 win over Case Western Reserve with 12 total tackles, which includes a career-best 11 solo stops, a sack, two tackles for loss, as well as a fumble recovery for a touchdown. Ciriello also received this recognition one day after he was named the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Defensive Player of the Week. The only other Geneva player to make the D3 Football.com Team of the Week this season is senior wide receiver Keaton Baker. Geneva is 6-4 overall after the win on Saturday, which means the program has a winning record for the first time since 2009, and will take on SUNY Brockport of Brockport, New York in the ECAC Division III Robert M. “Scotty” Whitelaw Bowl on Saturday, November 22nd at 12 noon in Rochester, New York.

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) reacts after he was sacked against the Cincinnati Bengals during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 16, 2025, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Pittsburgh quarterback Aaron Rodgers and his fractured left wrist could still play on Sunday when the Steelers visit Chicago.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday the team will evaluate Rodgers’ availability later in the week and that the key to Rodgers’ potential return will be whether he can function safely with a brace protecting the wrist.

Mason Rudolph, who filled in capably in the second half of Sunday’s 32-14 over Cincinnati, would start for AFC North-leading Pittsburgh (6-4) when it faces the NFC North-leading Bears (7-3) if Rodgers cannot.

The 41-year-old Rodgers, the oldest active player in the league, appeared to hurt the wrist while getting hit after a heave to the end zone with the Steelers driving late in the first half.

The four-time MVP clutched the wrist in the huddle following the play, though he did stay in to make one more pass — an incompletion to Roman Wilson — before the drive ended in a Chris Boswell field goal. Rodgers did not return to the sideline during the second half, though he greeted his teammates in the locker room after they left the field.