Zero2Cool
14 years ago
http://www.jsonline.com/sports/packers/99180464.html 

Green Bay In truth, general manager Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy could hardly have hoped for any more from Aaron Rodgers after they mortgaged their futures by trading Brett Favre.

All Rodgers has done in Green Bay is post a passer rating of 97.2, placing him just ahead of Steve Young (96.8) as the National Football League's all-time efficiency leader.

Just as the Packers were Favre's team from 1992-2007, they now belong to Rodgers. Almost without skipping a beat, the Packers see it as making a simple and also stunning transition from one franchise quarterback to another.

Thompson had the foresight to stop Rodgers' plunge in the 2005 draft after 21 teams passed, McCarthy developed him and Rodgers proved more than ready after a three-year apprenticeship.

At 26 with five seasons remaining on a $63.53 million contract, Rodgers is in position to equal if not exceed Favre's all-time career achievements.

"I'm not comparing him to anybody else," offensive coordinator Joe Philbin said. "But there's nothing that tells me this guy can't be an excellent player for a long time. He's a very good quarterback with a great future."

In 2008, the Packers wanted to see a competent level of starter's play from Rodgers. They got it.

In 2009, they wanted Rodgers to start winning games in wake of 6-10 and get them back to the playoffs. They went 11-5, qualifying for the postseason as a wild card.

This year, they want Rodgers to bring the Lombardi Trophy back to Green Bay for the first time since the 1996 season.

Unrealistic, you say? Not according to some in the national media.

Two football writers from Sports Illustrated have placed the Packers atop their preseason power rankings. Pro Football Weekly did the same.

Closing with a rush, the Packers had a legitimate chance to win the Super Bowl last year. Then their defense fell apart in Arizona, Rodgers didn't play his game and was soundly outplayed by Kurt Warner, and the Packers were eliminated in overtime, 51-45.

In order to take the Packers to North Texas for the 45th Super Bowl, Rodgers will attempt to join the short list of quarterbacks who have won a Super Bowl without first having won a playoff game in a previous season. In the last 25 years, that list includes Jim McMahon in 1985, Jeff Hostetler in '90, Warner in '99, Tom Brady in 2001 and Eli Manning in '07.

Favre had four playoff victories notched on his belt before the Packers swept to the mountaintop in 1996.

"He certainly appears to be a young quarterback on the rise," a personnel director for an NFC team said. "He played with confidence to play in big games, but until they win a big game that question is always there."

Of Rodgers' 17 victories in 33 starts, counting the postseason, six came against teams that finished with winning records. Five of those games were played at Lambeau Field, and the sixth was in Arizona last January for the regular-season finale when the Cardinals mailed it in.

"There's been a lot of guys with talent," the personnel man said. "But when they get into big games they try to do too much. Aaron is not playoff-hardened yet."

Although Rodgers' deep-ball accuracy deserted him in the wild-card game on potential touchdown bombs of 80 and 73 yards to a wide-open Greg Jennings, he does rank as one of the most pinpoint long passers in the game.

Thanks to mechanical alterations to his delivery and weight-room diligence, Rodgers' arm is much stronger than it was even three or four years ago.

Surprisingly athletic, he beats perfect coverage about once a week by taking off and running for a first down.

"His arm is big-time," said Philbin. "He's a big guy. Big hands. Long arms. And his mobility is outstanding."

Rodgers also has a plan for every pass and almost never throws into traffic. Counting playoffs, his touchdown-to-interception ratio in his first two seasons as a starter is 62-21, whereas Favre was at 42-40 after his first two seasons in Green Bay.

"I like the fact he was the quarterback of an offense that had 15 giveaways last year," Philbin said. "He was 30-7 (touchdowns to interceptions). I mean, holy cow. Man, a four-to-one interception ratio is not too shabby."

The main chink in Rodgers' armor has been his tendency to hold the ball. One scout said that flaw was evident during Rodgers' career at the University of California. Then he was responsible for 9 1/2 of 34 sacks (27.9%) in 2008 and 16 1/2 of 55 (30%) last year.

By comparison, Favre was charged with only 12 of 73 sacks (16.4%) in his last four seasons as a Packer. In lieu of sacks, however, Favre sometimes would unload interceptions.

"There's sometimes where you wish he would have gotten rid of the ball a little quicker," said Philbin. "But there's a lot of plays on film where he does a lot of the same things and gets the ball away just before the rush gets there and makes a big play. You can't always have it both ways. I don't think he's got a huge issue of holding onto the ball."

As the personnel man pointed out, Rodgers has a rapid release when he makes up his mind to throw the ball. At times, Rodgers tends to become greedy looking for the big play down the field, but Philbin said he did a better job getting rid of it in the second half of 2009.

"He has a pretty good mastery of what we're doing," said Philbin. "I don't think he's a guy that gets surprised an awful lot. Certainly, he's only started 32, 33 games in his NFL career. There's some things we're looking for him doing better."

Backup Matt Flynn also has increased his arm strength, one of the short-comings that caused him to fall to the seventh round in 2008. Now his coaches think he can move and throw, and that he knows what he's doing.

Given the Packers' burgeoning faith in Flynn, who destroyed highly touted Brian Brohm in two training camps, there seems to be no organizational incentive to sign a veteran quarterback or even keep a third on the roster.

"I'm gaining confidence in him every day," Philbin said. "His command of the huddle is very good. His decision-making is good. His arm is not as good as Aaron's today but it's improving.

"He's kind of a regular guy that you like to see do well. He's got a bounce in his step when he's in there. Example is the No. 1 criteria for leadership, and he sets a good example on the field. He's got a lot of juice, and he's got ability."


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RaiderPride
14 years ago
It is always interesting to look back at the teams who passed on this future hall of famer.

1 Alex D. Smith 49ers QB Utah
2 Ronnie Brown Dolphins RB Auburn
3 Braylon Edwards Browns WR Michigan
4 Cedric Benson Bears RB Texas
5 Cadillac Williams Buccaneers RB Auburn
6 Pacman Jones Titans DB West Virginia
7 Troy Williamson Vikings WR South Carolina
8 Antrel Rolle Cardinals DB Miami (FL)
9 Carlos Rogers Redskins DB Auburn
10 Mike Williams Lions WR USC
11 Demarcus Ware Cowboys DE Troy State
12 Shawne Merriman Chargers LB Maryland
13 Jammal Brown Saints T Oklahoma
14 Thomas Davis Panthers DB Georgia
15 Derrick O. Johnson Chiefs LB Texas
16 Travis Johnson Texans DT Florida State
17 David Pollack Bengals DE Georgia
18 Erasmus James Vikings DE Wisconsin
19 Alex Barron Rams T Florida State
20 Marcus Spears Cowboys DE Louisiana State
21 Matt Jones Jaguars WR Arkansas
22 Mark Clayton Ravens WR Oklahoma
23 Fabian Washington Raiders DB Nebraska
""People Will Probably Never Remember What You Said, And May Never Remember What You Did. However, People Will Always Remember How You Made Them Feel."
nerdmann
14 years ago
Thats cool but in all fairness, Rodgers wouldn't have been ANYTHING if Ted Thompson hadn't hired MM. He would have been a huge BUST.
But then again, Ted Thompson DID hire MM...
I can see why teams passed him over, though. Mike McCarthy himself preferred Alex Smith over AR12. Smith would hardly suck today if Mike McCarthy had remained his QB coach.
“Winning is not a sometime thing, it is an all the time thing. You don't do things right once in a while…you do them right all the time.”
Fan Shout
Mucky Tundra (4h) : Getting help would have been nice, but helping ourselves should always be the plan
beast (4h) : Too bad Seahawks couldn't beat Vikings
bboystyle (5h) : We just need to win Monday night and were in
Mucky Tundra (8h) : Or ties, but let's be real here
Mucky Tundra (8h) : Other scenario was Falcons+Rams losses
Mucky Tundra (8h) : Needed a Falcons loss for a Seahawk loss to clinch
buckeyepackfan (8h) : Am I wring in saying if Tge Vikings beat The Seahawks, The Packers clinch?
Mucky Tundra (21-Dec) : Agreed; you stinks
Zero2Cool (21-Dec) : I'm not beating anyone. I stinks.
Mucky Tundra (21-Dec) : rough injury for tank dell. guy can't catch abreak
beast (21-Dec) : So far the college playoffs have sucked... One team absolutely dominates the other
beast (21-Dec) : Well even if you weren't positive towards a guy, you wouldn't nessarily want to tell the media that (if they don't know about it)
Martha Careful (21-Dec) : I think MLF want Love to look past the end half issues, and feel good about his play. Our coaches generally keep a very positive tone.
beast (21-Dec) : I think a great running game will do that for most QBs
packerfanoutwest (21-Dec) : Coach Matt LaFleur has said quarterback Jordan Love is playing the best football of his career.
beast (21-Dec) : Oh, that's how you keep beating buckeye, with cheating
Zero2Cool (20-Dec) : There is a rule that if your name starts with 'b' you lose 15 points. Hey, I don't make the rules, I just enforce them!
wpr (20-Dec) : and then there is Beast. Running away with it all.
beast (20-Dec) : As of tonight, 3 way tie for 2nd in Pick'em, that battle is interesting!
beast (20-Dec) : Lions vs Vikings could be the main last game as it could determine division winners or #1 vs #2 seed
Mucky Tundra (20-Dec) : Or if KC needs to win for the #1 seed
Mucky Tundra (20-Dec) : Right now it looks like the only prime worthy games are Det-Minny and KC-Denver (if Denver can clinch a wild card spot)
Mucky Tundra (20-Dec) : The entirety of week 18 being listed as flex is weird
Zero2Cool (19-Dec) : Matt LaFleur today says unequivocally "Ted Thompson had nothing to do with the drafting of Jordan Love."
Zero2Cool (19-Dec) : Apparently, the editing is what pieces comments together. That Ted thing ... fake news.
Zero2Cool (19-Dec) : LaFleur "opportunity that Ted Thompson thought was too good to pass up"
Zero2Cool (19-Dec) : Jordan Love pick was Ted Thompson's idea.
Mucky Tundra (19-Dec) : Kyle Shanahan on signing De'Vondre Campbell as a FA last offseason: “We obviously made a mistake.”
packerfanoutwest (19-Dec) : Alexander’s last season with GB
Martha Careful (18-Dec) : if I were a professional athlete, I would probably look to see who the agent is for Kirk Cousins and then use him
beast (18-Dec) : $100 million fully guaranteed Kirk Cousins gets benched for rookie
Mucky Tundra (18-Dec) : a lower case b
Mucky Tundra (18-Dec) : The real lie is how beast capitalized his name in his message while it's normally spelled with
packerfanoutwest (18-Dec) : haha that's a lie
beast (17-Dec) : Despite what lies other might tell, Beast didn't hate the Winter Warnings, it felt refreshing to Beast for some reason.
Zero2Cool (17-Dec) : whiteout uniforms in general are pretty lame and weak. NFL greed at it's worst
Martha Careful (17-Dec) : The Viking uniforms, the whiteout uniforms specifically absolutely suck
beast (17-Dec) : Thanks Zero2Cool, looks a lot better now
beast (17-Dec) : Seems like someone has a crush on me, can't stop talking about me
Zero2Cool (17-Dec) : Should be gooder now. The forum default theme went to goofy land.
Zero2Cool (17-Dec) : What the hell
packerfanoutwest (17-Dec) : yeah beast hates the Winter Warning Unies
Mucky Tundra (16-Dec) : Okay I'm glad to know it's not just something happening to me lol
Mucky Tundra (16-Dec) : Zero, did you copy the Packers uniforms from last night and white out the board?
beast (16-Dec) : Oh crap, is the board going to the Winter Warning Uniforms too?!? It's all white on white right now!
Zero2Cool (16-Dec) : WR Odell Beckham Jr is officially a free agent after clearing waivers.
Zero2Cool (16-Dec) : Packers are 6th in sacks.
Zero2Cool (16-Dec) : RB David Montgomery will undergo season-ending knee surgery.
Mucky Tundra (16-Dec) : Dan Campbell on onside kick with 12 minutes left: In hindsight, wish I didn’t do that
Zero2Cool (16-Dec) : They have that whole 12th man thing so ...
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