Aaron Rodgers isn't the happiest man lately. He's been the subject of several close-up looks from the national media, examining whether he is the picture of quarterback perfection many have seen him as. Or perhaps he's a declining superstar whose greatest flaws are steadily being exposed for all to see. Despite his best efforts to keep them hidden.
If that sounds familiar, it's because it should. This is basically the same way things started to go for former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre 15 years ago. People started to wonder about his age and his health. He wasn't winning big games like he used to. Worse still, whispers began to surface about him off the field. Not all of them flattering.
If one were to look back and examine the timeline of both quarterbacks, they'd be astounded at how remarkably similar they are in terms of the rise to greatness.
Then the unexpected fall.
Aaron Rodgers and Brett Favre both started on the bench
People tend to forget that Brett Favre didn't start out in Green Bay. He was actually drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 1991. There he was the third string quarterback on the depth chart. The Packers traded to get him in 1992 and he actually began that season as the backup to Don Majkowski. It wasn't until Majkowski got hurt that Favre finally saw the field.
Rodgers was drafted in 2005 and was relegated to backup in Green Bay for the next three seasons behind Favre. Not until 2008 did he finally get the nod to be the starter.
Become an MVP by his fourth year playing
Favre took over the starting job for Green Bay that year in 1992. It took time for him to discover his true magic but in 1995 it all came together. He threw for over 4,400 yards with 38 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, winning his first of three-consecutive MVP awards.
Rodgers too spent four seasons climbing his way to the top. While he was far more efficient in those first few years, his apex was undeniably in 2011 when he 4,600 yards passing with 45 touchdowns and six interceptions. Good for the best single-season passer rating in NFL history (122.5) and his first of two MVPs.
Dominate the Bears
People don't remember how miserable those early Favre years were for Chicago. The only way to understands is to see the numbers. From 1992 when he became a starter through 2003, he was an astonishing 20-4 against the Bears in head-to-head matchups. Just a brutally one-sided affair.
Things didn't get better when Rodgers took his turn. Since he took over in 2008, the Packers are a decisive 17-5 in games he's started. If people were looking for why Green Bay now leads the overall rivalry, that 26-year run between those two quarterbacks tells the entire story.
Win the Super Bowl
This is where the similarities really get interesting. Everybody knows the Super Bowl is the barometer by which all great quarterbacks are measured. Both Favre and Rodgers claimed their crowns and did so at the same exact age of 27-years old. No that's not a joke.
Favre got his ring in 1996, accounting for three touchdowns against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI. Then in 2010, Rodgers threw three touchdowns (seriously) against the Pittsburgh Steelers to win Super Bowl XLV.
Suffer a string of brutal playoff failures following Super Bowl
Where it gets particularly fun for Bears fans and all others who hate the Packers is what followed those peak moments. Over the subsequent years, Favre was beset by a series of close calls that saw his hopes for a second ring dashed. Often in crushing fashion.
- Lost Super Bowl XXXII to the Denver Broncos in 1997
- Fell to the 49ers, a team they had never lost to in the playoffs, in 1998
- Threw six INTs in 2001 loss to the Rams
- Tossed bad INT in overtime against Eagles after leading 14-0 in 2003
- Lost to Vikings at home in 2004 after sweeping them in regular season
- Threw INT in overtime in 2007 NFC championship that lost the game
One would think Rodgers has at least had it a bit better, right? Not so much. At least Favre got back to the Super Bowl. He hasn't even accomplished that, and has built up an ugly array of losses of his own in the process.
- Lost to Giants in 2011 playoff opener after going 15-1 in
regular season - Fell to 49ers in both 2012 and 2013 including once at home
- Threw two costly INTs in Seattle that fed 2014 NFC championship collapse
- Completed less than 55% of his passes in 2015 loss to Cardinals
- Had INT in 2016 NFC championship that helped Falcons open 24-0 lead
Selfishness and lack of leadership became exposed
The leadership exodus pushed Rodgers further and further into an ill-fitting role. He never had to worry about speaking up back in 2010 or 2011. He played football. That's what he prefers. Multiple sources say Rodgers misses those days, with one adding he's become worn down and bitter about everyone's expectations of the type of leader he should be. In other words, as a former Packers scout puts it, Rodgers "is Brett Favre 2.0. He used to say, 'Oh, I'll never be like that guy.' And he literally is."
Those words came from the in-depth article written by Tyler Dunne of Bleacher Report regarding how Rodgers' relationship with former head coach Mike McCarthy came to an end. It became apparent that the quarterback came into a great situation surrounded by veteran leaders.
As those players moved on and he became the guy everybody looked to though, things got steadily worse. Rodgers began to think everything revolved around him rather than the team. If he didn't like something, he'd find a way to get rid of it.
Favre was much the same way. He didn't have to be the leader in the 1990s. Reggie White, LeRoy Butler, and others took care of that. Time passed though, and those guys retired. Suddenly the fun-loving kid from Mississippi was asked to grow up, and he didn't care for it.
This soon led to his to constant flirtations with retirement and everything has to be about him whether it was the consecutive starts streak or the passing records. The success of the team became secondary to building his personal legacy.
Everybody knows how this story ends
Favre continued to have personal success right up until his final days in Green Bay, but the franchise never realized the full potential of his reign. Now it feels like the same fate awaits Rodgers. The team is desperately trying to rebuild the roster in order to keep the window open long enough for another push.
Yet the arrival of a new coaching staff headlined by a head coach only four years older than Rodgers himself doesn't offer much optimism for the future. Not unless Matt Lafleur is a superior leader to the man he's so often connected to in Sean McVay. The man who just managed three points in a Super Bowl.
