Aaron Rodgers by Belmont & Belcourt Biographies

Author:Belmont & Belcourt Biographies [Rodgers, Aaron]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Price World Publishing, LLC
Published: 2012-05-13T04:00:00+00:00

Rodgers becomes the man at last

After years of drama and intrigue each offseason about whether or not he would retire, on March 4, 2008, Brett Favre finally retired from the Green Bay Packers. This opened the door for Aaron Rodgers to finally emerge as a starting quarterback in the NFL. In the meantime, Favre decided to forgo retirement, however, instead of sacrificing Rodgers, the Packers' organization traded Favre to the New York Jets.

2008

After another offseason working with his teammates, this time as the impending starting quarterback, Rodgers was ready to take the lead for the Packers organization. It is very common for quarterbacks to find a strong level of comfort with their tight end and Rodgers developed an affinity for both rookie tight end Jermichael Finley, who had been drafted in the third round out of Texas and would eventually go on to become a Pro Bowl player, and wide receiver Jordy Nelson out of Kansas State. The Packers had also drafted two new quarterbacks, Brian Brohm of Louisville and Matt Flynn of LSU, hedging their bet on Rodgers. Neither proved a threat to Rodgers, as Brohm was out of the league within two years and Flynn moved on to the Seattle Seahawks several years after that, after seeing Rodgers firmly establish himself in his new role.

In Rodgers' debut as a starter in game one of the season, many wondered if the Green Bay faithful would embrace Rodgers or boo him, as this was the first time since 1992 that any quarterback other than Favre had started a regular season game for the Packers. It didn’t take long to find out. Rodgers received a standing ovation when he was announced to the sell-out crowd. The fans’ faith in Rodgers was not misplaced. The Packers beat the Minnesota Vikings 24–19 at their home stadium, Lambeau Field. Rodgers finished the game with 178 yards passing and two touchdowns, one passing and one rushing.

That success carried over to the next week. In his second NFL start, Rodgers led the Packers to a win over the Detroit Lions in a blowout, 48–25. In that game, Rodgers threw for 328 passing yards and three touchdowns and was voted to receive the FedEx Air award for his achievement.

As the season went on, Rodgers achieved an impressive streak of 157 consecutive pass attempts without an interception. This was the third-longest such streak in franchise history, behind only Bart Starr (294) and Brett Favre (163). The streak ended in the fourth game of the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, when Rodgers suffered a shoulder sprain severe enough to possibly sideline him the remainder of the season. Rodgers played through the injury, his toughness winning him further admiration from his teammates and coaches.

As the season went on, Rodgers sustained a rollercoaster level of success. The team struggled down the stretch and finished the season with a record of 6–10, missing the playoffs. Rodgers took the loss personally. Despite the outcome, Rodgers had clearly proven that he was the

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