Winning a championship is hard. The NFL is littered with shattered dreams every single year. For example, look at what happened to the Buffalo Bills this past weekend against Kansas City. Every team has to deal with tough losses. However, what you accomplish in the postseason – fair or not – is what defines a legacy. Unfortunately for Aaron Rodgers, his performance in the Green Bay Packers’ 13-10 loss against the 49ers on Saturday shows he’s not one of the best when it comes to the playoffs.
Every year, there seems to be a reason. The defense wasn’t good enough. Too many injuries. Rodgers himself said a game needed to be at Lambeau to win. After Saturday night’s defeat, every excuse imaginable has been exhausted. Yes, winning in the NFL is hard. Consistently being in the mix should not be a given. But to consider Rodgers one of the all-time greats at this point would be foolish.
What Does Rodgers’ Legacy Look Like?
In all fairness, on February 6th of 2011, Aaron Rodgers won a Super Bowl. That’s something a lot of great players and coaches have never accomplished. It’s an incredible feat, and something fans should cherish forever. Nevertheless, given how successful the Packers have been with Rodgers, it’s a bit disappointing that they haven’t been able to get back to another championship. Since winning the Super Bowl, Rodgers is 7-9 in the playoffs, with three of those losses coming at home with the Packers as the #1 seed.
Right now, Aaron Rodgers is just barely beating out Joe Flacco in postseason victories. Every single quarterback ahead of him on this list has been to multiple Super Bowls. Tom Brady has the same amount of wins against the NFC in the playoffs that Rodgers has, and he’s only been in the conference for two seasons. Granted, Brady has had the benefit of a better defense in the postseason, and even won a Super Bowl one time only putting up 10 points. But in Saturday’s case, the Packers needed their MVP to deliver and he simply couldn’t do it.
For instance, think back to this moment. Green Bay had just stopped San Francisco on a huge 4th & 1. That should have won the Packers the game, if Rodgers could just get a few first downs. Unfortunately, just like in the NFC Championship game a year ago, the offense couldn’t move the ball when they needed to most. Following the blocked punt, Rodgers had another chance to win the game. Of course, we all know how that played out. Watching it back now and seeing how open Allen Lazard was on this play will haunt you.
Looking Forward
What hurts the most about this loss is it feels like the closing of a chapter. You win 13 games three years in a row, get home field advantage two years in a row, and have Rodgers be MVP two years in a row. What else can you ask for? Unfortunately, the Packers just couldn’t get it done – again. And that falls completely on Aaron Rodgers. And now, you could potentially see Jimmy Garoppolo make his second Super Bowl appearance or Matthew Stafford reach the same amount as Rodgers.
Even knowing his playoff failures will affect his legacy, former Packers tight end Tom Crabtree has a nice sentiment here. That Super Bowl win was special, and it shouldn’t be forgotten.
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