The Evolution of Aaron Rodgers

What the Green Bay Packers hold in starter Aaron Rodgers is much more than expected of him, sure he’s becoming another great quarterback for the Pack, and is replacing Favre wonderfully, but that’s all people expect from him. In reality Rodgers has done more for this organization by just being calm, something he does on the field tremendously. Rodgers has also put up with a lot coming from this team and management, especially dealing with the circumstances he’s been put through.

Rodgers was drafted 24th overall in the 2005 draft to replace Brett Favre when the time called for it. Rodgers had a great college career and was touted to be a good NFL starter, but slid all the way to 24 when the Packers gladly took him. He was the backup his rookie year in which the Packers went 4-12 and had a chance for being the starter in 06, but good old Brett came back for another season. In 2006 Rodgers again sat behind the legend known as Favre, but this time got some playing time, but against a shutout loss to New England in which Favre got hurt and put Rodgers in the game, he broke his foot, causing him to miss the rest of the season. Rodgers was fine for the start of the next season though as he made a full recovery.

Turmoil came to Mr. Rodgers neighborhood though before the start of 2007 season as the Raiders were shopping Wide Receiver Randy Moss, and the Packers had interest. Their bargaining chip was none other than Aaron Rodgers. Although the trade didn’t happen, Rodgers must have felt some animosity with management possibly trading him away. In 2007 Rodgers had limited playing time again, but had a good showing against the Cowboys after once again Brett Favre got hurt. Rodgers finished the night with an 18 completion for 201 yard night with the first passing touchdown of his career. Packer fans saw in that game that Rodgers could be a very reliable Quarterback in this league against one of the best teams of that year, holding his own. This game was what gave cheese heads everywhere hope for the future after Favre.

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Then in 2008 Favre decided to hang them up, giving the starting job to Aaron Rodger finally, or so we thought. Favre later decided to unretire, and return, but the Packers had already decided to move on, and traded Favre, although through out the situation there were reports that Rodgers has facing some heavy duress, due to the status of the legendary Quarterback. It was later reported that Favre was traded to the Jets thus finally certifying that Rodgers would be the starting QB for the 2008 season. Yet there was another blow to the confidence that the management had in Rodgers when they drafted quarterback Brian Brohm in the 2nd round of the draft. The calm vibe that Rodgers gave off, just trying to get through training camp without letting too much of the outside negative pressure get to him really speaks about how he focuses on what needs to be done, and not what everyone wants to talk about. The start of this season didn’t look to certain for the team as no one knew how well Rodgers would do as the starter, seeing as how he did well coming off the bench, and this season was a testament to what he could do. The opener was a game against the hated Minnesota Vikings at home at Lambeau, which Rodgers scored two touchdowns in, leading them to win 24-19. The season started very successful, until the first true test for Rodgers’ durability questions were brought up once more, with his shoulder being severely sprained against the Tampa Bay Bucs. He stayed in the game, resulting in a close game loss. Overall though, he proved that injuries wouldn’t stop him as they had in the past and that his toughness was not in question. Rodgers didn’t miss a start that season, although he did struggle in late close game situations, resulting in many close losses. The Packers finished 6-10 that season due to the late game struggles, but otherwise the season was okay for Rodgers first season leading the team. He showed signs of brilliance and proved that he could start, even though there was a big let off from the 13-3 season the previous year with Favre.

With the start of the 2009 training camp there was now a lot of support behind Aaron Rodgers going into the season. Although when the season started, the team didn’t look to great getting off to a sluggish 4-4 start, including a loss the winless Buccaneers. That’s when Rodgers finally came to play and got the team going with five straight wins, in which he had a span of passing for 1,324 yards with 9 touchdowns, and only 2 interceptions. He took control of the team, and they finished 11-5 for the season, and clinched the 5th seed in the playoffs. This was the real test for Rodgers though; playing against the defending NFC Champions in their home stadium rattled his normally calm stance, as he threw an interception on his first attempt. From there he calmed himself down as he normally does, and matched Kurt Warner blow for blow in a very offensive explosive game, being lost in the final play of the game when his late game woes caught up to him on a day when most everything was going right for him. Rodgers fumbled the ball right into Karlos Dansby’s lap and he returned it for the game winning touchdown, to end the Packers’ season.

Now entering his third season as the starter, Rodgers has shown that he has the talent to lead this team to the promise lands of the Super Bowl. He has the talent around him, and full support of the Packers this season, if the line can keep him standing Aaron Rodgers #12, will do brilliant things. He just has to remember one thing. Stay calm.

By Byron Reyna
ProFootball-fans.com Green Bay Packers Correspondent