At least one member of the Pittsburgh Steelers isn’t on board with Aaron Rodgers joining the team this offseason.

On Tuesday, safety DeShon Elliott took to Instagram and didn’t hold back his feelings on Rodgers, writing, “Leave his a** at the retirement home,” under a post highlighting the fact that the Steelers were current betting favorites to land the 41-year-old quarterback.

The comment struck a nerve with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, however, leading him to chastise Elliott and state that it’s not his place to insert his commentary on the topic.

“I respect DeShon Elliott,” Smith said on “First Take”. “I like him on the Steelers, but he might need to keep his mouth shut. Leave that to Mike, to let Mike Tomlin say that. Let, let one of the executives say that. Or if you gonna let a player say it, let be somebody like a T.J. Watt. I just don’t think that DeShon Elliott should have said what he said. I don’t think he’s in a position respectfully to say that kind of stuff.”

Elliott, who emerged as a major piece of Pittsburgh’s defense in his first go-around with the organization this past season, eventually deleted the reply.

Smith’s embellishing the situation a bit in that Tomlin or Watt would never come out and make as bold of a public declaration as Elliott did, but the gist of his message still came across.

Ultimately, Elliott’s thoughts wouldn’t deter the Steelers from pursuing Rodgers if they were to covet him. Such a move doesn’t appear to be in the cards at the moment, however, so the team likely won’t have to worry about any potentially awkward locker room dynamics.

Pittsburgh instead appears focused on hammering out an agreement with Justin Fields to return in 2025, which would force Russell Wilson to look for work elsewhere.

As for Rodgers, the New York Jets’ new regime has communicated that he won’t be welcomed back next season with a year left on his current contract. The four-time MVP and future Pro Football Hall of Famer threw for 3,897 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in 2024, but the team face-planted into a 5-12 record.