Does anyone else want to keep criticizing Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers? No? I didn't think so.
Rodgers, a two-time MVP, has come under fire this season for everything from Green Bay's good-not-great offensive performance to his relationship with actress Olivia Munn. For a guy who brought home a Lombardi Trophy, he sure wasn't getting cut a whole lot of slack as the Pack entered last night's game against the Detroit Lions with a 7-4 record. Admittedly, Rodgers is on pace to finish with his second-lowest QBR (69.4) since 2010. But how much does that really hurt him when that number still ranks fifth in the league?
Not much, especially after Green Bay's spectacular comeback victory last night. Trailing 20-0, the Packers launched a frenzied wave of attacks at Detroit that culminated with a 61-yard-touchdown pass from Rodgers to Richard Rodgers on a bonus play made possible by a face-mask penalty of the previous snap. Does that sound like the type of miracle play a struggling quarterback could pull off?
"I'm out of breath," Rodgers said just a few minutes after his Hail Mary heroics. "Most amazing game of my life...When he caught it, I blacked out."
It's true that the Packers have desperately missed wide receiver Jordy Nelson this year. With the All-Pro pass-catcher healthy last season, Green Bay's passing attack ranked eighth in yards per game (266) and ninth in completion percentage (65.1). This year, the Packers rank 22nd (230) and 23rd (61.0) in those same categories. Neither Randall Cobb nor Davante Adams has been able to consistently replace the lost production.
Yet Green Bay sits just one game behind the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC North at 8-4 with a matchup against the division leaders set for Week 17. Even if they lose that game, the Packers are all but guaranteed to make their seventh straight post-season.
And it all comes back to that one (somewhat) season saving pass. With just one play, Rodgers has effectively flipped the script and silenced all the critics who have picked at him this year. Surely the Packers don't want to make a habit of relying on last-minute bonus plays for victories. But for just this one time, the theatrics of the moment helped to remind everyone just how good Rodgers and the Packers can be.
Now the question becomes: can they keep it up?
