Is Aaron Rodgers declining already?

Share this page

Mazz22

Mazz22

A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies.
Joined
Jan 8, 2014
Messages
18,445
Reaction score
3,595
Points
113
Location
MA
I thought it made sense to make a thread on this to track Rodgers this season. This discussion was going on in another thread.

According to NFL.com Rodgers hasn't thrown for more than 300 yards in 11 games; eight of those contests he's tossed fewer than 250 yards (including both games in 2016). He's gone 14 straight contests with a QB rating below 100. Last year Rodgers threw for a career-low 6.7 yards per attempt. He's worse through two games this season, at 5.9.

As Tommy pointed out, Rodgers has had his whole compliment of weapons the first two weeks of this season (Nelson was out all last year with a torn ACL). His numbers are: 57.1% completions, 206 ypg, 3 TD, 1 ING in 2 games. Yards/attempt is his lowest of his career as a starter (5.9), and his QB rating is 82.6, which is low-middle of the pack in the league, and 21 points below his career average.

Rodgers is also 32 years old (will turn 33 in Dec.). That means his drop off started last year when he was only 31!

Most of the media seems to be all over him but continue to say it is his Oline, coaching, etc. To Rodgers credit, he has said that he has to play better but this drop off is now more than a season so bears watching.
 
Well, the decline starts at different ages for different players. Some its 30 years, some its 35 years and very few make it into their 40s.

So, it could be happening. I would like to see far more of a sample than a couple games to even speculate.
 
subroc said:
Well, the decline starts at different ages for different players. Some its 30 years, some its 35 years and very few make it into their 40s.

So, it could be happening. I would like to see far more of a sample than a couple games to even speculate.
Click to expand...

I just updated my post. His decline in play has been going since early last season.
 
subroc said:
Well, the decline starts at different ages for different players. Some its 30 years, some its 35 years and very few make it into their 40s.

So, it could be happening. I would like to see far more of a sample than a couple games to even speculate.
Click to expand...

This^. Ask me again in a month or two.

Cheers
 
I apologize. My original post made it seem as if Rodgers decline in play has only been going on for 2 games this season. His drop off started last year. I have added the stats to my original post.
 
They play the AFC South this year and he still has 2 games against Detroit and Chicago each

After he torches all of those defenses the tune will change. If not, then the conversation should escalate. I think it's too early to say, and IIRC this was a thing last year too, and the year before during his infamous "RELAX" interview.

That team, from what I've seen so far, isn't looking very good right now though
 
This is interesting. I haven’t considered he is already in a decline but it’s certainly possible. Everyone blamed his down year on Jordy’s torn ACL but that is truly ridiculous when you think about it. Rodgers is the QB and his stats shouldn’t depend on one guy, much like Brady. Brady was 38 last year and played well despite numerous injuries to the offensive line, Gronk, Edelman, etc. He could just be in a funk, but it will be interesting to see if he bounces back this year or continues to struggle.
 
Jay-Cutler_Gregory-Shamus_Getty-Images-1024x725.jpg


---------- Post added at 06:55 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:54 AM ----------
Frog said:
This is interesting. I haven’t considered he is already in a decline but it’s certainly possible. Everyone blamed his down year on Jordy’s torn ACL but that is truly ridiculous when you think about it. Rodgers is the QB and his stats shouldn’t depend on one guy, much like Brady. Brady was 38 last year and played well despite numerous injuries to the offensive line, Gronk, Edelman, etc. He could just be in a funk, but it will be interesting to see if he bounces back this year or continues to struggle.

---------- Post added at 08:38 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:38 AM ----------

This is interesting. I haven’t considered he is already in a decline but it’s certainly possible. Everyone blamed his down year on Jordy’s torn ACL but that is truly ridiculous when you think about it. Rodgers is the QB and his stats shouldn’t depend on one guy, much like Brady. Brady was 38 last year and played well despite numerous injuries to the offensive line, Gronk, Edelman, etc. He could just be in a funk, but it will be interesting to see if he bounces back this year or continues to struggle.
Click to expand...

You could say that again!... :coffee:
 
Frog said:
This is interesting. I haven’t considered he is already in a decline but it’s certainly possible. Everyone blamed his down year on Jordy’s torn ACL but that is truly ridiculous when you think about it. Rodgers is the QB and his stats shouldn’t depend on one guy, much like Brady. Brady was 38 last year and played well despite numerous injuries to the offensive line, Gronk, Edelman, etc. He could just be in a funk, but it will be interesting to see if he bounces back this year or continues to struggle.

---------- Post added at 08:38 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:38 AM ----------

This is interesting. I haven’t considered he is already in a decline but it’s certainly possible. Everyone blamed his down year on Jordy’s torn ACL but that is truly ridiculous when you think about it. Rodgers is the QB and his stats shouldn’t depend on one guy, much like Brady. Brady was 38 last year and played well despite numerous injuries to the offensive line, Gronk, Edelman, etc. He could just be in a funk, but it will be interesting to see if he bounces back this year or continues to struggle.
Click to expand...

You could say that again.

Damn you Fly! Beat me.

I should've read thru whole thread.
 
Never understood the fascination with Rodgers. Good QB? Absolutely One of the best ever? Hell no. To me, he's in that second level along with Eli and Flacco.
 
I'm not a Rodgers watcher, but if you look at Brady, you see his game constantly evolving. At 39, he's not physically what he was at 25 or even 30, but as physical skills diminish he compensates with the mental aspects of the game, and I believe the coaches help a lot with game planning to his strengths. Wasn't long ago that everyone was predicting Brady was all done. The formula to defeat Brady was simple, apply pressure up the middle and make him uncomfortable in the pocket. What do the Pats do, the evolve the offense so the ball is out before pressures can get to him. Brady evolves to master the quick decision-making required to make it work.

I don't know if Rodgers takes the same approach, or if his coaches do either, but if they don't it's no surprise the he falls back to the middle of the NFL QB pack.
 
EasyBigFella said:
Never understood the fascination with Rodgers. Good QB? Absolutely One of the best ever? Hell no. To me, he's in that second level along with Eli and Flacco.
Click to expand...

WUT???
Eli & Flacco are above average with occasional flashes of good/great/clutch.
Rodgers has better arm talent and athleticism than both of them, as well as he is far more accurate. He is also FAR less turnover prone than either of them. I mean the dude went like 3 years without throwing an INT at home. If you want to put Rodgers in the Roethlisberger/Romo category (1-2 steps below elite), I could see that but ELI/FLACCO????

I am not sure AR is declining but he definitely looks off. TB had some years like that where we couldn't pinpoint the"WHY" but the clutch seemed to be on hiatus. Could just be a hiccup, not ready to define it yet.
 
I put this in the Random Football News thread yesterday

Is Aaron Rogers still a great QB? He isn't playing like one to me.

What's Happened to Aaron Rodgers?

First, let's get something straight. Aaron Rodgers isn't playing poorly. Andy Dalton against the Steelers? That's playing poorly. Russell Wilson on one leg? That wasn't pretty. Blaine Gabbert was downright putrid.
No, Rodgers isn't playing poorly, but he is playing poorly for Aaron Rodgers. There's a difference.
For much of Rodgers' career, there were few like him in the history of football. He has the accuracy of Joe Montana, the football acumen of John Unitas, the mobility of Russell Wilson and the arm strength of Dan Marino.
He has long been, to me and others, the most complete quarterback ever to play the game.
But not lately. And we've seen this version of Rodgers for a large chunk of last season and through the first two games of this year. Against the Vikings on Sunday night, where he was 20-of-36 for 213 yards with one passing touchdown, one rushing score, one interception and one fumble. And despite carrying a 103.8 career passer rating, Rodgers hasn't reached the 100-point mark in any of his last 12 regular-season games.
It wasn't supposed to be like this. With Jordy Nelson back from injury, Green Bay's offense this season was supposed to be different. Rodgers was supposed to be different.
And maybe he will be. It's only two games. He might go on that familiar Rodgers tear and then we'll all shut up. But for now, something is clearly wrong.
What that is, however, has become one of the NFL's most compelling parlor games, focusing on a handful of possibilities:
• Rodgers is hurt. I don't buy this one. He doesn't seem significantly injured, but I cannot stress how much this theory is making its way around some of the personnel men with whom I speak.
Two scouts who watched both of Rodgers' games this season told B/R something seems seriously off with him. Not so much with the offense, but him.
They, and others, think Rodgers is suffering from some sort of long-term issue, like a chronic shoulder problem. I heard similar speculation last season.
hi-res-cdf6a115950d0860d6e263584af9a9d4_crop_exact.jpg
Jamie Squire/Getty Images

This is conspiracy theory stuff. Like UFOs. Well, wait, UFOs are real. Like the Loch Ness Monster. Not buying it yet.
• The offense isn't playing to his strengths. Said one AFC scout: "He's one of the greatest downfield throwers this league has ever seen but they run a dink-and-dunk offense."
I'm not certain how accurate this is, but I would say, with one exception, Rodgers doesn't have the high-quality receivers to run an explosive, downfield offense.
• The offensive talent around him just isn't that good. This is the theory I believe.
Look at the roster. Nelson is good, but he's a 31-year-old receiver whose game is built on speed coming off a serious knee injury. The offensive line is OK. The running game is OK. The other receivers are OK. The defense is OK. That's a lot of OK.
Yes, Rodgers could play better, a lot better, for sure. Yet when I watch the Packers, so much is still on Rodgers' shoulders.
There's no Stefon Diggs. Or DeAndre Hopkins. When Le'Veon Bell was suspended, the Steelers turned to DeAngelo Williams, and he responded.
Which player (not named Rodgers) on this Packers team can you turn look at and say, "That guy will bail them out?"
• The problem with Aaron Rodgers is all of us. That is what one general manager told me. The expectations for Rodgers are so stratospheric they're unrealistic. There is some truth to this.
"No other quarterback is held to the standard he is," the general manager said. "Not even Tom Brady."
It's only two games into the season. The Packers are my Super Bowl pick. That hasn't changed. Too early to change that, or my belief that Rodgers will one day be viewed as the best ever to play the position, a spot, to me, that Brady holds currently.
Now, though, something is not right. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Even after just two weeks.
It will get better, but in the meantime, the "decline" of Rodgers will remain one of the biggest growing questions hovering over this season.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2...-aaron-rodgers
 
I wonder if all the hits he's taken is catching up with him. Over his career, he's taken a lot more sacks than the other top QBs is his era, (I think Rothlisburger is the only other QB that compares in that way).

He's been unique in that sacks (and hits) never effected his play like it does most other QBs (including Brady). However, now they seem to be effecting him.

He's going to need to get rid of the ball quicker than in years past. That's what has enabled Brady to continue to be so productive into his later years.

My two cents.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top