Aaron Rodgers

Rodgers during the 2008 preseason.
No. 12     Green Bay Packers
Quarterback
Personal information
Date of birth: (1983-12-02) December 2, 1983 (age 28)
Place of birth: Chico, California
Height: 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Weight: 225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High school: Pleasant Valley High School
College: California
NFL Draft: 2005 / Round: 1 / Pick: 24
Debuted in 2005 for the Green Bay Packers
Career history
Green Bay Packers (2005–present)
Career highlights and awards
2× Pro Bowl (2009, 2011) First-team All-Pro (2011)[1] AP NFL MVP (2011) Super Bowl champion (XLV) Super Bowl MVP (XLV) NFC champion (2010) Single season QB Rating record (122.5)[2][3] Associated Press Athlete of the Year (2011) FedEx Air NFL Player of the Year (2010) First-team All-Pac-10 (2004) Only player in NFL history to throw for over 4,000 yards in each of the first two seasons as a starting QB Only player in NFL history to throw 45+ touchdowns, and 6 or less interceptions in a single season
Career NFL statistics as of Week 17, 2011
Pass attempts 2,113 Pass completions 1,381 Percentage 65.4 TD–INT 132–38 Passing yards 17,366 QB Rating 104.1 Stats at NFL.com

Aaron Charles Rodgers (born December 2, 1983) is an American football quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected in the first round (24th overall) of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Packers.^[4] Rodgers played college football at the University of California, Berkeley, where he set several California Golden Bears records, including lowest interception rate at 1.43%.^[5]

Professionally, Rodgers is the NFL's all-time career leader in passer rating during both the regular season with a rating of 104.1, and the post-season with a rating of 105.5 – among passers with at least 1,500 and 150 pass attempts respectively.^[6] He also holds the league's lowest career pass interception percentage for quarterbacks during the regular season with a percentage of 1.80%, and the single season passer rating record of 122.5.^[7] Rodgers led the Green Bay Packers to win Super Bowl XLV and was named Super Bowl MVP. As a result, he was named Associated Press Athlete of the Year in 2011.^[8]

Early years[link]

Rodgers was born in Chico in Butte County, California,^[9] the son of Darla Leigh (née Pittman) and Edward Wesley Rodgers. His father is a Texas-born chiropractor who played football as offensive lineman for California State University, Chico, from 1973 to 1976.^[10][11] The Rodgers family moved to Ukiah, California, where Aaron attended Oak Manor Elementary School.^[12] Edward Rodgers tossed a football with his sons Luke, Aaron and Jordan, and told them not to drink and party in college or else they would limit themselves in sports like he did. Aaron Rodgers took this advice to heart.^[11] At the age of ten, he was featured on the front page of the Ukiah Daily Journal for his top performance at a local basketball free throw competition.^[12]

Later, the family moved to Beaverton, Oregon, where Rodgers attended Vose Elementary School and Whitford Middle School, playing baseball in the Raleigh Hills Little League at the positions of shortstop, center field and pitcher.^[13] He returned to Chico in 1997 and attended Pleasant Valley High School, starting for two years at quarterback and garnering 4,421 passing yards. He set single-game records of six touchdowns and 440 all-purpose yards. Rodgers also set a single-season record with 2,466 total yards in 2001 and graduated in the spring of 2002.^[14][15][16] Rodgers finished high school with a good grade point average, variously reported as 3.6 (A-minus) or a "perfect" 4.0, and he scored well on his SAT, variously reported as 1300, 1310 and 1400.^{[11][17][18][19][20]}

College career[link]

2002[link]

Despite his record-setting statistics, Rodgers attracted little interest from Division I programs. In a 2011 interview with E:60, he attributed the relative lack of attention in the recruiting process to his unimposing physical stature as a high school player at 5'10 (1.78 m) and 165 lb (75 kg). Rodgers had wanted to attend Florida State University and play under Bobby Bowden, but was rejected.^[21]He garnered only an offer to compete for a scholarship as a walk-on from Illinois.^[22] He declined the invitation, and considered quitting football to study for law school. He was then recruited to play football at Butte Community College in Oroville, a local junior college about 15 miles (25 km) southeast of Chico. Rodgers threw 26 touchdowns in his freshman season,^[23] leading Butte to a 10–1 record, the NorCal Conference championship, and a No. 2 national ranking. While there, he was discovered by the California Golden Bears head coach Jeff Tedford, who was recruiting Butte tight end Garrett Cross. Tedford was very surprised to learn that Rodgers had not been recruited earlier. Because of his good high school scholastic record, he was eligible to transfer after one year of junior college instead of the typical two.^[17]

2003[link]

As a junior college transfer, Rodgers had three years of eligibility at Cal. He was named the starting quarterback in the fifth game of the 2003 season, coincidentally against the only team that offered him a Division I opportunity out of high school, Illinois. As a sophomore, he helped lead the Golden Bears to a 7–3 record as a starter.^[24] In his second career start, Rodgers led the team to a 21–7 halftime lead against USC (then ranked No. 3) before being replaced in the second half by Reggie Robertson due to injury .^[25][26] The Bears won in triple overtime, 34–31.^[25] Rodgers passed for 394 yards and was named game MVP in the Insight Bowl against Virginia Tech. In 2003, Rodgers tied the school season record for 300-yard games with 5 and set a school record for the lowest percentage of passes intercepted at 1.43%.^[27]

2004[link]

As a junior, Rodgers led Cal to a 10–1 record and top-five ranking at the end of the regular season, with their only loss coming in a closely contested game at No. 1 USC, in which the score was 17–23. In that game, Rodgers set a school record for consecutive completed passes with 26 and tied an NCAA record with 23 consecutive passes completed in one game. He set a school single game record for passing completion, completing 85.3% of his passes in that game, and holds the school career record for lowest percentage of passes intercepted at 1.95%.^[27] Rodgers performance setup the Golden Bears themselves at first and goal with 1:47 remaining in the game and the chance to get the game winning touchdown. On the first play of goal line stand, Rodgers threw an incomplete pass. This followed with a second down sack by Manuel Wright.^[28] After a timeout and an incomplete pass on third down, USC stopped a run play to win the game.^[28] Rodgers commented that It was "Frustrating that we couldn't get the job done."^[28]

After Texas was picked over Cal for a Rose Bowl berth, the fourth-ranked Bears earned a spot in the Holiday Bowl, but lost to Texas Tech, 45–31. After the season, Rodgers decided to forgo his senior season to enter the 2005 NFL Draft.^[29]

College career statistics[link]

College awards and honors[link]

• 2003 Honorable mention All-Pac-10 ^[31]
• 2003 Insight Bowl Offensive MVP ^[32]
• 2004 Cal Co-Offensive MVP^[33]
• 2004 First-team All-Pac-10^[34]
• 2004 Second-team Academic All-Pac-10 ^[32]
• 2004 Honorable mention All-American by Sports Illustrated^[35]

Professional career[link]

Pre-draft[link]

Rodgers was expected to be selected early in the 2005 NFL Draft as he had posted impressive numbers as a junior with Cal, throwing for 2,320 yards with a 67.5 completion rating. He had tied an NCAA record when he completed 23 consecutive passes against the eventual national champions, USC. He threw for 24 touchdowns and only 8 interceptions in his last college season, impressing many NFL scouts. They commented that he was a "talented strong-armed junior"^[36] who "combines arm strength, mechanics and delivery to make all the throws", but noted that his stats could be inflated due to playing in a quarterback-friendly system and that he would need to adjust to the more elaborate defensive schemes of the NFL.^[36]

Measurables[link]

^{[37] [38]}

Draft[link]

Rodgers was widely projected to be the number one pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, but slipped to the 24th overall pick to the Green Bay Packers. Rodgers' slip to the 24th choice by the Green Bay Packers became one of the biggest stories of the draft, though he was still the second quarterback selected. The San Francisco 49ers, who held the first overall pick, were not interested in Rodgers as then-49ers head coach Mike Nolan, a strong personality, did not believe that Rodgers' attitude could co-exist with him. The 49ers would select quarterback Alex Smith.^[39] In addition, many teams drafting between 2nd and 23rd positions had positional needs more pressing than quarterback.^[40] Rodgers was one of five other quarterbacks coached by Jeff Tedford to be drafted in the first round, joining Trent Dilfer, Akili Smith, David Carr, Joey Harrington, and Kyle Boller.

Green Bay Packers[link]

Backup seasons (2005–2007)[link]

Rodgers in September 2007

In August 2005 Rodgers agreed to a reported five-year, $7.7 million deal that included $5.4 million in guaranteed money and had the potential to pay him as much as $24.5 million if all incentives and escalators were met.^[41]

Rodgers spent his rookie season with the 4-12 Packers as the Packers' backup quarterback behind Brett Favre. He received his first extended look in the opening preseason game against the San Diego Chargers after replacing Favre.^[42] He had to endure a malfunctioning radio in his helmet and two offensive flags. In his first NFL game, Rodgers completed two out of seven passwords and was sacked twice. He continued to struggle through the preseason, before ending the series by converting two third towns and throwing a touchdown pass to Tight End Ben Steele against the Tennesee Titans.^[43] As the regular season began, Rodgers saw very little action for the rest of the season. He saw some action behind center against the New Orleans Saints in the fourth quarter of a 52-3 victory, and completed his first career pass to Fullback Vonta Leach for 0 yards. ^[32] On December 19, 2005 Rodgers entered in to the competition against the Baltimore Ravens at the end of the third quarter in a 3-48 loss. ^[32] He completed eight passes out of the 15 attempted for 65 yards and an interception.^[44] Rodgers saw one more play at the end of the season against the Seattle Seahawks, taking a knee to end the game.^[32]

Though Rodgers played very little in his rookie season, he ran the scout team during practice.^[45] His job was to mimic opponents' schemes for the defense for the game the following week. Rodgers said this was critical to his success, and that those were his game reps.^[46] The defense and scouts often complained that he was practicing too hard, and at one point asked him to tone it down.^[45] He stated that he had probably "rubbed people the wrong way" with how hard he practiced.^[45] Wide receiver Donald Driver, commented that Rodgers took "every scout-team possession like it was the last possession of his life."^[46]

After the losing season of Rodgers' rookie year, head coach Mike Sherman was fired and replaced by current head coach Mike McCarthy.^{[47] [48]} Rodgers was then placed in McCarthy's "Quarterback school" for six hours a day several times a week.^[49] This focused on working on his motor skills such as hand-eye coordination, finger dexterity, and mechanics.^[45] McCarthy also worked on Rodgers' release point, moving it from right beside the ear hole of his helmet to further below it, to give him a smoother release. ^[38] He was also instructed to lower his body fat ratio from 15 percent to 12 percent.^[45] Rodgers was resistant to the changes at first but later commented that he thought they were for the better.^[49] During practice in 11-on-11 drills, Rodgers completed 62.7% of his passes with seven interceptions, and McCarthy commented that "He's getting better" and that "You're looking at a guy who's going to mature. He's got athletic ability that people still haven't seen."^[38]

Favre did not attend the quarterback school under the new coaching management and thus knew none of the terminology in the new system. It was here that the friendship between the two began to form as Rodgers instructed which plays in the Sherman system corresponded to those in the new McCarthy system.^[49] When the preseason began, Rodgers played as the backup in all four games; he completed 22 out 38 passes for 323 yards and three touchdowns.^[32]

Rodgers saw very little action during the 2006 season, but did step in on October 2 when Favre left owing to injury, and completed two out of three passes for 13 yards.^[32] On November 19, 2006 Rodgers broke his left foot while playing against the New England Patriots in a 35–0 defeat at home, filling in for an injured Brett Favre, and missed the remainder of the 2006 season.^[49] He made a full recovery and was ready for the start of the 2007 season. With then quarterbacks' coach Tom Clements, Rodgers reviewed every play from the previous season, learning to read defensive coverages and to throw receivers open.^[49] He also took the spring practice reps with the Packers first team.^[49]

However, weeks after an emotional interview with NBC's Andrea Kramer, following the team's season-ending victory at Chicago, Favre announced that he would stay with the Packers for the 2007 season, again postponing Rodgers' hopes of becoming the Green Bay Packers' starting quarterback.^[50] Prior to the 2007 season, rumors surfaced about a potential trade involving Rodgers in which he would be traded to the Oakland Raiders for wide receiver Randy Moss.^[51] However, Moss was traded to the New England Patriots during the second day of the 2007 NFL Draft, and Rodgers stayed in Green Bay.

Rodgers stepped in when Favre was injured in the second quarter against the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football on November 29, 2007.^[52] He completed 18 passes for 201 yards, with no interceptions.^[52] He also threw his first touchdown pass but was sacked three times.^[52] Rodgers brought the team back from a 17 point deficit to a 3 point deficit, but the Cowboys went on to win 37–27.^[52]

Starting seasons[link]

2008[link]

Brett Favre's retirement announcement on March 4, 2008 opened up the Packers' starting quarterback position to Rodgers for the 2008 season. Although Favre decided to return from retirement, he was traded to the New York Jets, which meant that Rodgers would become the starter.^[53]

With Rodgers making his debut as a starter, the Packers beat the Minnesota Vikings 24–19 at Lambeau Field. This marked the first time since 1992 that a quarterback other than Favre started a regular season game for the Packers. Rodgers ended the game with 178 yards passing and 2 touchdowns (1 passing/1 rushing).^[54] In just his second NFL start the following week, Rodgers was voted the FedEx Air award winner after passing for 328 yards and three touchdowns in a win against the Detroit Lions.^[55] During the fourth week of the season, Rodgers streak of 157 consecutive pass attempts without an interception ended when he was intercepted by Derrick Brooks of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The streak was the third longest in franchise history behind Bart Starr (294) and Brett Favre (163).^[56] Rodgers suffered a severe shoulder sprain in the game but continued to start and played well in a win against the Seattle Seahawks two weeks later, which to many proved his toughness.^[57] Despite early successes, Rodgers had been unable to win a close game during the season despite seven opportunities to do so.^[57][58] On October 31, 2008 Rodgers signed a six year, $65 million contract extension through the 2014 season.^[59][60]

2009[link]

For the opening game of the 2009 season, Rodgers recorded his first win in a comeback situation. The Packers were trailing at the beginning of the fourth quarter when Rodgers completed a fifty yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Greg Jennings with about a minute remaining in the game to contribute to the 21–15 victory over the Chicago Bears.^[61] Rodgers was named National Football Conference (NFC) Offensive Player of the Month for October 2009, when he passed for 988 yards, completed 74.5 percent of his passes, and recorded a passer rating over 110 for all three games played during the month.^[62] After a mediocre 4–4 start to the season and a devastating loss to the previously winless Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the team began to heat up. Rodgers led the Packers to five straight wins, in which he threw for a total of 1,324 yards, 9 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. Rodgers and the Packers won two of their last three games, finishing the second half of the season with a 7–1 record and an overall 11–5 record; good enough to secure a wild card playoff berth and clinch the fifth seed in the playoffs. Rodgers also made the record books, becoming the first quarterback in NFL history ever to throw for 4,000 yards in both of his first two years as a starter.^[63]His passing yardage made him second all-time in Packers history, behind only Lynn Dickey's all-time single-season record.^[64]

In his first action as a starter in the playoffs against the Arizona Cardinals, Rodgers's first pass was intercepted by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Rodgers settled down after that miscue, however, and finished the game 28 of 42 for 422 yards with four touchdowns. Despite Rodgers' offensive efforts, the Packers lost the game when he fumbled on the last play of the game in overtime. The ball was returned by Karlos Dansby for the winning touchdown in the 51–45 Cardinals victory. It was the highest scoring playoff game in NFL history.^[65]

Due to his regular season performance, Rodgers earned a trip to his first Pro Bowl as the NFC's third Quarterback behind Drew Brees and Brett Favre. However, after Favre dropped out due to injury and Brees was replaced due to his participation in Super Bowl XLIV, Rodgers became the NFC's starter for the game. He finished the day 15 of 19 passing with 197 yards and two touchdowns, despite the NFC losing the game.

2010[link]

After Rodgers led his team to a 2–0 start in 2010, the Packers lost three of their next four games, including back-to-back overtime losses. The two overtime defeats brought Rodgers' record in overtime games to 0–5. In Week 14 of the season, Rodgers sustained his second concussion of the season. Backup Matt Flynn was put into the game as Rodgers' replacement. The Packers lost the game 7–3 to the Detroit Lions. Rodgers missed the next week's regular season start ending his streak of consecutive starts at 45, which is tied for the second longest in team history.^[66] However, he turned around the team's performance; they won the final two regular season games against the New York Giants and Chicago Bears, both de-facto playoff elimination games.^[67]

With a 10–6 record, the Packers entered the NFL playoffs as the No. 6 seed Wild Card. Rodgers led the Packers past the top three seeds in the NFC on the road in consecutive weeks. In the Wild Card round, they defeated the No. 3 seeded Philadelphia Eagles 21–16. In the divisional round, Rodgers completed 31 of 36 pass attempts for 366 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 48–21 victory over the No. 1 seeded Atlanta Falcons.^[68] During the contest with the Falcons, Rodgers tied an NFL record for consecutive playoff games with at least three touchdown passes (3 games). On January 23, 2011 Rodgers struggled with a 55.4 passer rating as the Packers beat the No. 2 seed Chicago Bears 21–14 win to capture the NFC Championship.^[69] The Packers earned a trip to Super Bowl XLV, which they won, 31–25, against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rodgers completed 24 of 39 pass attempts for 304 yards and 3 touchdowns in the win, and was named Super Bowl XLV MVP for his performance.^[70][18] He was named the FedEx Air NFL Player of the Year for the 2010 season.^[71]

2011[link]

Rodgers got the Packers off to a 13–0 start in 2011 until they were beaten by the Kansas City Chiefs. He played the best season in his career to date, throwing for 4,643 yards, 45 touchdowns and just 6 interceptions, good for a passer rating of 122.5, which is now the best single season passer rating in NFL history. These numbers earned him the NFC Offensive Player of the Month award for September, October, and November, and FedEx Air Player of the Week six times (Weeks 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, & 13). He was the winner of the 2011 Galloping Gobbler for MVP in the Thanksgiving game between the Packers and the Detroit Lions, a 27–15 Green Bay victory, and tied an NFL record for consecutive games with at least two touchdown passes (13). The Packers finished the regular season with a 15–1 record, Rodgers playing in 15 of the 16 games, with the only exception being week 17 vs. the Detroit Lions, a game in which he could be rested after the club clinched home-field advantage for the playoffs the previous week.

Touchdown celebration[link]

Since becoming a starter, Rodgers has become known for his unique touchdown celebration which he and his teammates have dubbed the "Championship Belt". After a scoring play Rodgers celebrates by making a motion as if he is putting an invisible belt on around his waist.^[72][73] Teammate Greg Jennings said of the celebration: "It's just something fun that he does. We get excited when we see it cause we know that he's made a play or we've made a play as offense."^[74] The gesture drew the praise of World Wrestling Entertainment wrestler Triple H and has become common for Green Bay fans to mimic the celebration as a point of pride during games.^[74]

In addition to the fans, teammates and opponents have also done the celebration. During the NFC Divisional Round of the playoffs on January 15, 2011 against the Atlanta Falcons, Rodgers was sacked by Falcons defensive end John Abraham who performed the celebration immediately following the play. It was Abraham's only sack of the night. Minutes later, Rodgers scored a rushing touchdown and did the celebration in the Falcons' endzone. The Packers went on to win the game 48–21.^[74] Additionally, after scoring a touchdown in the NFC Championship game, fellow Packer B. J. Raji celebrated using the "Championship Belt" celebration.^[75] While holding the Lombardi Trophy after winning Super Bowl XLV, Rodgers' teammate Clay Matthews placed a replica of the WWE World Heavyweight Championship belt on Rodgers' shoulder.

Rodgers' celebration is also featured in a State Farm commercial in which he appears, the celebration is called the "Discount Double Check".^[76] A second State Farm commercial with Rodgers featured teammate Raji doing the celebratory move.^[77]

Awards and achievements[link]

• Single season QB Rating record (122.5)^[2][3]
• Only player in NFL history to throw for over 4,000 yards in each of the first two seasons as a starting QB
• Only player in NFL history to throw 45+ touchdowns, and 6 or less interceptions in a single season
• 7x FedEx Air Player of the Week (Week 11, 2010 & Weeks 4–7, 9, 13, 2011)
• NFC Player of the Month (October, 2009)
• The Wisconsin Legislature approved a resolution that declared December 12, 2012 (stylized as 12/12/12) "Aaron Rodgers Day" in his honor as Rodgers also wears number 12.^[78][79]

Professional statistics[link]

Regular Season

^* NFL record

Postseason

Personal[link]

Rodgers currently lives in Del Mar, California, 20 miles north of San Diego.^[80] He has two brothers; his younger brother Jordan is the quarterback for the Vanderbilt Commodores.^[81] Rodgers is a devout Christian but he more subdued about proclaiming his faith. In an interview with ESPN Milwaukee he said, "I feel like my stance and my desire has always been to follow a quote from St. Francis of Assisi, who said, ‘Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.’ So basically, I’m not an over-the-top, or an in-your-face kind of guy with my faith."^[82]

References[link]