The hype around the New York Jets has been pretty intense, while Aaron Rodgers basked in all of the attention. After flaking out the past several years in Green Bay, Rodgers was trying to convey he impression that he was serious again about football. The question of his attitude and commitment was one of the biggest question marks around the 2023 season, along with the obvious issues around his age. We had just seen Tom Brady pull this off, but many of us were skeptical that Rodgers could come close to matching Brady’s maniacal work ethic.
The scene was set for the September 11th debut of Rodgers and the Jets last night on Monday Night Football. Rodgers ran into the stadium carrying the American flag in front of a delirious crowd.
Then, after a handful of plays, all the noise and enthusiasm was sucked out of the stadium. Rodgers was sacked and his ankle appeared to be twisted. He went down after trying to stand up and then left the game for good. Everyone is speculating on the severity of the injury, but it doesn’t look good at the moment.
For the Jets, a season-ending injury destroys their title hopes. The defense in New York is excellent, and they had put some great weapons around Rodgers. As you might expect, social media was filled with angry reactions from Jets fans.
Shockingly, the Jets managed to win the game in wild fashion due to their defense and some big plays. Josh Allen was terrible for the Bills, raising questions about whether he’s regressing. He had an embarrassing fumble and was intercepted three times by safety Jordan Whitehead. Garrett Wilson made a ridiculous catch in the end zone on the throw from Zach Wilson that should have been picked off. And Breece Hall was spectacular with 10 carries for 127 yards.
Other AFC contenders had to be happy with this result. The Jets are screwed if Rodgers is out for an extended period of time, yet they managed to drop a loss on the Bills.
Despite being one of the most talented quarterbacks to ever play the game, the legacy of Aaron Rodgers keeps taking more hit with each playoff loss. How many times can he and the Packers come up short in critical playoff games?
The conditions yesterday were atrocious, and both offensive lines had a lot of trouble in pass protection. Still, Rodgers and the Packer offense couldn’t muster much production after their opening touchdown drive. And of course, the Packer special teams unit lived up to its horrible reputation and basically handed the game to the 49ers, but there’s not excuse for Rodgers and this high-octane offense to lay an egg in this game. The Packers entered the game as solid favorites over the Niners and were the clear favorite to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. Jimmy Garopollo was also battling injuries to his throwing hand and shoulder. The Packer defense held up strong, but the offense behind Rodgers didn’t hold up its end of the bargain.
The Aaron Rodgers soap opera continues in Green Bay. We know it’s Overreaction Monday, so we’re hesitant to make too much of what we see in week one of the NFL. But Rodgers seems like he’s easing into a mid-life crisis as opposed to getting geared up for an NFL season. After the game, Rodgers pointed out that everyone needs to relax. It’s only one game, even if he and the Packers were just whipped 38-3 by the Saints.
Perhaps this is just what Rodgers needs to snap into shape and get serious about the season. Given his talent and track record it’s hard to bet against him.
Speaking of bets, Rodgers and the Packers get the Lions at home next week on Monday Night Football, which may be just what they need. The Packers are 10.5 point favorites in the early betting lines.
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The Aaron Rodgers era in Green Bay may end up as one of the greatest blown opportunities in NFL history. Winning one Super Bowl with a talent like Rodgers is just not good enough.
Of course, the Packers still have Rodgers, and they played for the NFC championship last season. So what did they do heading into a draft loaded at the wide receiver position in a year where they really needed to get Rodgers more weapons?
Aaron Rodgers' receivers cost him at least 648 yards last season because of drops. The average for qualifying quarterbacks was 282 and the second-placed quarterback had only 507. pic.twitter.com/UCkG2iYXpM
They drafted a quarterback in the first round. Jordan Love may end up being a great pick, but he doesn’t seem like a sure thing at this point. And while
April 19, 2020 ” target=”_blank”>Rodgers will say all the right things, he has to be pissed at the situation.
The Packers have a window to win an NFL championship that runs the length of time that Rodgers remains an elite quarterback. Yes, they need to think about the future, but they shouldn’t squander this opportunity.
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The Chicago Bears lost their opener at home against arch rival Green Bay last night, kicking off the NFL’s 100th season. But the implications here go far beyond a disappointing loss and not covering the spread. Mitch Trubisky demonstrated all the limitations we’ve come to expect from him as a starting quarterback. His vision and accuracy are just terrible.
Some of this falls on Matt Nagy, who didn’t play Trubisky during the preseason and then abandoned the running game last night. This guy is supposed to be an offensive genius and yet he called a miserable game.
The Bears could be in trouble here. We don’t want to overreact after one game, but it’s hard to see how the Bears get much more out of Trubisky. With that in mind, Nagy needs to commit to the running game and utilize play action to give Trubisky easier throws. With the Denver defense waiting for them next week, they need to fix this quickly.
Meanwhile, Aaron Rodgers looked rusty as hell in the first quarter and had to rely on a couple of big throws to move the ball against the tough Bears defense. But the Packers defense was excellent, so perhaps Green Bay can get back to making noise in the NFC this season.
The Bears were a 3-point favorite at home, so this was basically a pick-em game. It will be interesting to see the line for next week’s game at Denver. It’s easy to read way too much into week one results. The issue here is that Trubisky’s limitations have been evident for two years and were on full display again last night.
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