One of the most recognisable faces in the NFL, quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been an ever-present member of the Green Bay Packers since taking over the team in 2008.
BEGINNINGS
Despite being born into a family of talented athletes in Chico, California, in 1983, and excelling at high school football, Aaron Rodgers attracted little attention from colleges with leading football programs.
After being rejected by Florida State University, he considered quitting football to study law but eventually chose to play for nearby Butte Community College.
Rodgers played so well at Butte that he eventually transferred to a much larger university - the University of California, Berkeley - in 2003.
Rodgers threw for over 5,000 yards and 43 touchdown passes during his two years at the University of California, Berkeley, and decided to make the step into the world of professional football in 2005, entering the NFL Draft that year.
The 2005 NFL Draft had the potential to be a landmark moment for Rodgers. Not only was he about to enter the league, but the team he had supported growing up, the San Francisco 49ers, had the number one overall pick and needed a quarterback.
Instead San Francisco selected quarterback Alex Smith.
Rodgers, all while being filmed for the NFL’s draft coverage, awkwardly sat and waited while numerous other players’ names were read aloud. The ordeal was finally over when he was eventually selected by the Green Bay Packers with the 24th overall pick.
After the Draft, a reporter famously asked Rodgers: “How disappointed are you that you will not be a 49er?”
He replied: “Not as disappointed as the 49ers will be that they didn’t draft me.”
After being drafted by the Green Bay Packers, Aaron Rodgers played backup to legendary quarterback Brett Favre.
FROM BACKUP TO SUPER BOWL CHAMPION
However, the Packers already had a quarterback. Brett Favre was a Green Bay legend and had already delivered the franchise a title after winning Super Bowl XXXI following the 1996 season.
Favre wasn’t ready to hand over the team just yet, but when he eventually left Green Bay for the New York Jets in 2008, Rodgers became the starting quarterback.
This meant Green Bay had a quarterback other than Favre starting a game for them for the first time since 1992. Despite finishing with a 6-10 record, Rodgers impressed in his first season as the signal caller, throwing 28 touchdown passes.
His seamless transition saw the Green Bay front office reward him with a six-year $65 million contract, even though the team missed the playoffs.
Rodgers led Green Bay to the playoffs for the first time in his career in the 2009 season, the year in which he also earned his first Pro Bowl selection. In the postseason, the Packers faced the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card Round.
In a modern epic of a game, the score was locked at an unbelievable 45-45 in overtime. But the highest-scoring postseason game in NFL history would end due to an error from Rodgers. He fumbled the ball near the start of the extra period, only for Arizona to return it for a touchdown and take a sensational 51-45 victory.
The following season was a topsy-turvy one for the Wisconsin-based franchise, who needed to win their final two matchups of the regular season to have any chance of returning to the playoffs. In a must-win game against the New York Giants, Rodgers threw for 404 yards and guided the Packers to the postseason.
After defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 21-16 in the Wild Card Round, the Packers would then rout the Atlanta Falcons, 48-21 in the Divisional Round, then beat bitter rivals the Chicago Bears, 21-14, in the NFC Champonship Game to advance to Super Bowl XLV.
Against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Rodgers put on an MVP performance. He threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns as the Packers won Super Bowl XLV. After waiting in the wings for three seasons, Rodgers took his chance and delivered Green Bay their fourth Super Bowl in franchise history.
Rodgers took over as the full-time starter for the Packers ahead of the 2008 season.
MVP AWARDS
Defending their Super Bowl title, Rodgers and the Packers stormed to a league-best 15-1 record, becoming just the sixth team in NFL history to win 15 games in a season.
Rodgers was named NFL MVP for his performances in 2011, but Green Bay were upset by the New York Giants in the Divisional Round of the playoffs. As such, the Packers became the only 15-1 team to not win a postseason game.
Rodgers again led the Packers to the playoffs following the 2012 season—but they suffered postseason heartbreak once more. After defeating the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card Round, Green Bay would go on to lose 45-31 to the San Francisco 49ers in the Divisional Round.
In 2013, Rodgers signed a deal that gave him the NFL's largest salary per season, agreeing to a contract extension that saw him receive a staggering $110 million over five years. Unfortunately, the good news in Green Bay turned out to be short-lived.
A fractured collarbone meant the newly-minted quarterback missed over a month of the 2013 campaign, and the Packers were in danger of missing the playoffs. Amazingly, he made a miraculous recovery to return in time for the regular season finale against the Chicago Bears and led Green Bay to a win, the NFC North title, and the right to host a home playoff game against the San Francisco 49ers. But once again, the 49ers would prove to be the Packers’ undoing, as San Francisco ran out 23-20 winners.
Despite a slow start to the 2014 campaign, Rodgers won the MVP award for a second time after throwing 38 touchdown passes and guiding the Packers to the NFC Championship Game. However, the team missed the opportunity to advance to the Super Bowl after losing 28-22 in overtime to the Seattle Seahawks.
Aaron Rodgers is one of only two quarterbacks in NFL history to win four or more MVPs.
Rodgers led his team to the postseason in the next two seasons but was still unable to take them back to the Super Bowl. Despite a trademark Hail Mary touchdown pass to send the game into overtime in the Divisional Round of the playoffs, the Packers were defeated by the Arizona Cardinals. In the 2016 season's playoffs, Rodgers took his team to the NFC Championship Game but lost once more, this time to the Atlanta Falcons.
Rodgers’ next two seasons in Green Bay were not as successful as his previous years as the Packers’ quarterback. In the 2017 season, he missed the playoffs for only the second time as a starter in his career, a year in which he also fractured his collarbone and played just seven games.
Rodgers signed a four-year, $134 million contract extension with the Packers in 2018, but the team again missed the playoffs after winning just six games. Mike McCarthy, Rodgers’ head coach since 2006, was fired and replaced by Matt LaFleur.
Rodgers’ on-field performance then returned to MVP levels, and in fact, he won the award in the 2020 and 2021 seasons, becoming just the second player in league history to be named NFL MVP four times. Despite throwing 111 touchdown passes to just 13 interceptions in his first three years under LaFleur, a second trip to the Super Bowl still eluded Rodgers. He lost in the NFC Championship Game twice (in the 2019 and 2020 seasons) and the Divisional Round in the playoffs following the 2021 season.
DRAMA AND THE BIG APPLE
Off the field, however, Rodgers continued to cause controversy—most notably in the 2021 season, when he missed a Week 9 game against the Kansas City Chiefs after testing positive for COVID-19. Rodgers stated he was “immunized” when asked about his vaccination status before the season began, but it transpired that he had not been vaccinated. He was subsequently fined by the NFL for multiple rule violations put in place for unvaccinated players.
Before the 2022 season, there were doubts about whether the quarterback would return to Green Bay for another season, but he and the team soon agreed to a three-year contract extension with a salary of over $50 million—making him the then-highest-paid player in NFL history. The 2022 season, however, would end up being Rodgers' last in Green Bay. With a young group of wide receivers and a broken thumb—sustained during a matchup with the New York Giants in London—Rodgers was unable to reach the playoffs, missing out on a postseason trip after an agonizing Week 18 loss to the Detroit Lions.
On April 26th, 2023, after a ‘darkness retreat’ intended to provide clarity around his future in the league, Aaron Rodgers was traded to the New York Jets—a team that many deemed just a quarterback away from a playoff run. Rodgers wasted no time becoming a fan favorite—taking an unprecedented $35 million pay cut to help the team surround him with talent. However, just four snaps into the first game of the 2023 season, New York fell silent as Rodgers tore his Achilles and was ruled out for the rest of the year.
Heading into the 2024 season, the New York Jets have retained many of their stars defensively, whilst upgrading an incredibly underwhelming offense from a season ago. As a result, Rodgers is tipped as the favorite to win Comeback Player of the Year, while the Jets are viewed as Super Bowl favorites.
One of the most talented quarterbacks the league has ever seen, Rodgers is known for leading his team to the postseason, breaking all kinds of NFL records, and his iconic ‘Championship Belt’ touchdown celebration.
Now with the New York Jets, Rodgers is seeking his second Super Bowl victory in 2024.
