Whose Career is Better: Favre vs. Rodgers

The Green Bay Packers have been blessed with almost three decades of hall of fame quarterback play. From 1992 since Brett Favre took over as the starter, he and Aaron Rodgers have combined to lead the Packers to three Super Bowl appearances and two wins (one each), 13 Division titles, 273 wins and five NFL MVP awards. Now that it seems like Rodgers’ career might be ending earlier than anybody would have thought, it’s time to decide whose career would you rather have Brett Favre or Aaron Rodgers?

For this exercise I will be looking at the totality of each quarterback’s career. That means we do have to count the Favre retirement saga and his subsequent comebacks with the Jets and Vikings. It is also impossible to predict what will happen to Aaron Rodgers in his last few seasons, and even how many season he will continue to play. He could do a John Elway and comeback and win a few lat career Super Bowls, or he could drop off and lose his starting job to Jordan Love, who knows. For the sake of the argument we’ll assume he doesn’t win another Super Bowl.

Let’s start with the easiest comparison, who is the more talented quarterback? This is the easiest question to answer because it is hands-down Rodgers. Favre had the stronger arm, but not by much and he couldn’t touch Rodgers’ overall arm talent. Rodgers is one of the most physically gifted quarterbacks of all-time. He has a strong arm, accuracy, athleticism, mobility and is also one of the smartest quarterbacks ever. Favre may be nearly as physically gifted as Rodgers, but there’s a reason he has thrown the most interceptions in NFL history. Favre was a gunslinger. Where Rodgers meticulously picks his targets and throws a pinpoint pass, Favre tended to force throws to his receivers, which to his credit worked more than it didn’t, but it had some pretty ugly results at times. Advantage Rodgers.

Next we’ll compare overall career stats. Here’s there stat lines:

 

Favre: Record 186-112  62 Comp%  71,838 yards  508 TDS  336 INT  86 QB Rating

Rodgers: Record 113-60-1  64.6 Comp%  46,946 yards. 364 TDS  84 INT. 102.4 QB Rating

 

A couple of things stand. out from comparing their stats. Favre has started 120 more games than Rodgers, and Rodgers has been much more efficient in his starts than Favre. Looking at their record as a starter Rodgers has won about 65 percent of his starts while Favre won 62.5, not a huge difference. Rodgers and Favre throw touchdowns at a similar enough rate (6% for Rodgers, 5% for Favre), but the interception rate is where Rodgers blows Favre away (Rodgers 1.3%, Favre 3.3%). It is fair to point out that Favre played in an era where defenses could be rougher with receivers and even quarterbacks. In Rodgers’ career pass interference has become a much easier penalty to draw on the defender, and Rodgers himself has more protections as a quarterback than Favre did in the 1990’s. Possibly the most impressive stat for either star is Brett Favre’s iron man streak. Favre started 297 straight games in his career from 1992 until it ended in 2010. That’s the longest streak in NFL history. While that streak is impressive, it isn’t enough to tip the stat scales in Favre’s favor, advantage Rodgers.

Next up is career accolades. Brett Favre won three straight MVP awards from 1995-97, 11 Pro-Bowls, and is a three-time first-team All-Pro. Rodgers won two MVP awards in 2011 and 2014, eight Pro-Bowls, and two-time first-team All-Pro. Advantage Favre for the extra MVP.

Next is one of the most important categories, winning. Both Favre and Rodgers have done their fair share of winning in the NFL regular season, but what ave they done in the playoffs when the games matter the most? Both quarterbacks have won one Super Bowl during their careers. Favre played in a second but lost to the most overrated quarterback in NFL history, John Elway. Rodgers has never made it back to the big game since winning it in 2011. He did however take home Super Bowl MVP honors, something Favre failed to do in 1997. In the playoffs as a whole both quarterbacks have similar records. Favre is 13-11 and 2-3 in NFC Championship games. Rodgers is 10-8 and 1-3 in the NFC Championship. Both have lost big games in very heartbreaking ways. Favre blew the 2007 and 2009 NFC Championships with bad interceptions that lead to game winning scoring drives by the Giants and Saints respectively, both went on to win the Super Bowl that season. Rodgers fumbled away a playoff game against the Cardinals in 2009, and his team blew a huge lead against the Seahawks in the 2014 NFC Championship, and was subsequently blown out of the playoffs almost every other season. This is a tough call but I’m giving the advantage to Favre here for the extra Super Bowl appearance and being two plays away from two more Super Bowl births, while Rodgers’ only real chance at another Super Bowl came in 2014. Advantage Favre.

Picking between two of the all-time great quarterbacks is extremely difficult and it’s neck and neck up until this point. Our deciding factors for making this choice then come down to career perception, and leadership. Rodgers has been talked about in the “best quarterback in the league” conversation since he won the Super Bowl in 2011. The thing is most of those conversations end with analysts giving the caveat that Rodgers is the “most gifted” or “most talented” quarterback in the league, while Tom Brady or Peyton Manning were the overall best. Favre on the other hand was hands down the best quarterback in the NFL for most of the ’90s. His competition was mostly John Elway who may have surpassed Favre only one or two years in 97-98, and Dan Marino who could never get his team to a Super Bowl Victory. It was Favre who electrified fans with his comeback wins and gunslinger approach to the game and was either the best, or in the conversation for best quarterback from 1994-2007. Advantage Favre.

Both quarterbacks have very big but very different personalities. Favre is the loud, boisterous country bro who every fan of the NFL probably wanted to have a beer with. Rodgers is more reserved but has a very funny and biting wit to him. Favre was widely popular among fans across the league during his heyday, while Rodgers is more reviled. Favre’s teammates have mostly glowing things to say about him after they played together, while many of Rodgers’ have accused him of being a bad teammate. Overall both seem like good teammates and great leaders in their own way, but I’ll give Favre the edge for one reason: Rodgers’ more intense leadership style reminds you of shades of Michael Jordan or Tom Brady, only Rodgers had only been able to ride it to one Super Bowl, while Brady and Jordan are the best to ever do it. Sometimes the leader just isn’t quite good enough to demand that much from his teammates. Advantage Favre

Now before I wrap this up, are there any career blemishes or personal issues that either faced that could but a stain on their overall career? With Favre there are a few things. First is his retirement saga. Favre had been talking about retiring since the early 2000’s, which is why the team drafted Rodgers in the first place in 2005. Favre was reportedly cold to Rodgers and refused to help him become the next great quarterback. They had a strained relationship for the first three years of Rodgers’ career. Favre finally retired in 2008, only to return a few months later and expect the starting job that had been given to Rodgers. The Packers didn’t budge and Favre forced his way to the Jets where he went 8-8 and had a decent season that was derailed by an arm injury. Favre then retired again, only to return on Brad Childress’ plane to play two seasons for the Vikings before finally calling it quits for good. Favre also ran into trouble with the Jets when he sent a picture of his watch (conveniently with his dick in the picture) to the Jets sideline reporter. The NFL deemed there was a lack of evidence to pursue anything against Favre, but it’s still not a great look even 12 years later. The only real blemish against Rodgers is his prickly at times personality and alleged alienation from his family. Advantage Rodgers.

I’ve considered a lot when trying to decide who has had the better career, things like physical skill, stats, accomplishments, leadership, toughness, overall perception, and off-field reputation. With everything considered, it I think Brett Favre has had the better career overall by the tiniest of margins. His peak was longer, Favre won just a little bit more than Rodgers did, and he did the most with his talents. That being said Rodgers could go scorched Earth trying to prove the doubters wrong once again and win a late-career Super Bowl or two or bring home another MVP award. That would be amazing and I kind of hope that happens, but for now give me Brett Favre over Aaron Rodgers.

 

the Chip on Aaron Rodgers’ Shoulder will Make or Break his 2020 Season

Aaron Rodgers may be under the biggest microscope of his NFL career this season after the Green Bay Packers drafted his heir apparent Jordan Love in the first round of the NFL Draft. Now it’s Rodgers’ turn to respond on the field, if and when the NFL season commences after the coronavirus pandemic (hopefully) dissipates.

Rodgers led the Packers to a 13-3 record last season, a rebound of sorts as Green Bay made the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The two-time MVP could not overcome a much stronger 49ers team in the NFC Championship as San Francisco smoked the Packers 37-20 to secure a birth in the Super Bowl. That dropped Rodgers to 1-3 in his career in NFC Championship games. Now it seems like his own franchise may be looking to the future with the Love pick, placing Rodgers in the center of the media’s eye this season.

He has two ways to respond this season. The chip that’s always been on Rodgers’ shoulder, that most likely just got a lot bigger since the draft, could fuel him to a career renaissance and lead him to return to his MVP peak he enjoyed between 2011-2014. The other scenario is that the media and fan scrutiny becomes too much and the 36-year-old Rodgers folds under the pressure and continues to decline, paving the way for Love to supplant him as the started after two more years.

After slipping to the Packers at 24 in the 2005 draft, Rodgers has played his whole career with a fuck you attitude fuelling his out of this world talent. This new perceived slight could be just what Rodgers needs to rejuvenate his career. Looking at the numbers, 2019 wasn’t Rodgers’ best season by far, but it’s not all that far off from elite production. Rogers is still the best quarterback in the league at protecting the football having only thrown six interceptions over the last two seasons. With second-year Head Coach Matt LaFleur scheming new ways to get his receivers open, Rodgers could unlock a new level of the current Packers offense. Last season his favorite target Davante Adams went down and missed four games while still almost reaching 1,000 yards. Running backs caught 8 of Rodgers’ 26 touchdown passes in 2019. Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams both return in contract years. Both backs could have an increased roll catching passes out of the backfield in 2020.

The argument for Rodgers’ demise will revolve around his temperament, and perceived lack of offensive talent this season. At times in his career Rodgers has been know to be a bit prickly and had a very bad falling out with former coach Mike McCarthy. If anything similar manifests with LaFleur, things could go downhill quickly in Green Bay. The supporting cast around Rodgers is also quite thin. Adams is his only reliable receiver, with no real option at tight end after the release of Jimmy Graham. The hesitation to surround Rodgers with high-end talent could be the organization and quarterbacks eventual downfalls.

Rodgers is 36-years-old and will turn 37 during the season. Whatever happens to one of the best quarterbacks of his generation this season, every move he makes in 2020 will undoubtedly be picked apart in every way possible.

What do the Packers do Now?

Just a few months ago the Green Bay Packers seemed to be on an upwards trajectory. New head coach Matt LaFleur breaths life into a team that had missed the playoffs the previous two seasons. Aaron Rodgers starts to show glimpses of his former fire-breathing dragon ways,  and leads the Packers to a 13-3 regular season, a first-round bye, followed by a win over the Seahawks in the Divisional Round to set up an NFC Championship showdown against the San Francisco 49ers. Fast-forward four months and ask the question: why is the fan-base so pissed off? Well a few things happened between the Seahawks victory and now, a week after the NFL draft, to turn even the most hopeful fans into a bunch of jackals.

First the Packers got smoked by the 49ers in the NFC Championship 37-20. The Packers allowed 285 rushing yards and hardly touched Raheem Mostert all game long. This lackluster big game performance all but exposed the Packers as frauds and accentuated the team’s holes. Then the coup de gras happens during the draft. The Packers seemingly have glaring need at wide receiver, and fans are in luck, this happens to be one of the best and deepest receiver drafts in the history of football. What can go wrong? Well General Manager Brian Gutekunst trades up in the first round and instead of giving Aaron Rodgers an offensive weapon to help the team get over the hump, he bypasses the hopes and dreams of fans everywhere and takes Rodger’s backup and hopeful eventual replacement in quarterback Jordan Love. Fans have been outraged ever since and many NFL pundits are still confused by the move. Now that the draft is over and the ramifications of the Packers organizational shift are still being sifted out, what do the Packers do now heading into the 2020 season?

The first thing they need to do is tighten up their organization. The Packers can’t afford any more leaked conversations about how Aaron Rodgers seems extremely pissed off about the Love pick. Basically Packers brass needs to tell Brett Favre to shut the hell up until they get to figure things out and make sure they and Rodgers are on the same page. Then the Packers need to take this offseason and establish an identity. Green Bay needs to develop some kind of sense of who they are in year two under LeFleur. Year one was can be chalked up as a learning experience where players and coaches were feeling everything out and getting used to a new system. Year two is when the Packers must show signs of what style they have chosen to play. If the draft is any indication, it looks like the Packers are planing to get stronger, tougher, and lean on a power run game. Drafting running back A.J. Dillon in the second round and tight end/h-back hybrid Josiah Deguara in the third seem to inform that LeFleur is maybe trying to replicate the power running scheme he employed while working as the Offensive Coordinator for the Tennessee Titans in 2018. If that is indeed the case, LeFleur will still need to scheme ways for breakout star running back Aaron Jones to get involved. A power running game could take some pressure off of Aaron Rodgers who enters his age 36 season in 2020, and hasn’t risen to his former elite level since 2016.

The defense will need to show vast improvement from the NFC Championship without veterans Blake Martinez and Tramon Williams who were lost to free agency. It will be up to a cast of mostly youngsters to turn the defensive ship around, starting in the secondary with budding star Jaire Alexander. Alexander at times over his first two seasons has show flashes of becoming a shutdown cover corner. At other times he has lagged off of his receiver and still allows a number of big plays. He and fellow young corner Kevin King will need to blossom into reliable starters and possible star caliber players if the Packers want to improve on last season.

While pessimism and organizational chaos have been the themes of the offseason for the Packers, fans can still be optimistic about the upcoming season. Rodgers is still a top ten quarterback in the league capable of taking a talent rich team to the Super Bowl in the same vain as John Elway during his late career resurgence. The talk of the offseason was the packers lack of depth at the receiver position, but the Packers still have plenty of offensive talent. Aaron Jones if coming off of a career year in which he scored 19 touchdowns. Davante Adams is still only 27 years old and one of the premiere receivers in the league. Throw in secondary options Jamaal Williams, Devin Funchess, Allen Lazard, and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and the Packers have enough fire power to be a competent offense. They might not blow your doors off, but enough of those guys can get the job done. The defense still has the Smith brothers coming off the edge generating sacks, and second year safety Darnell Savage could blossom into a Pro-Bowl level talent. The defense is still quite young and has the chance to grow into a top 15 defense in the league.

While the Packers likely didn’t make themselves much better this offseason, the players they kept around could be the right ones to still make a run at the playoffs. Unless Rodgers implodes or retires anytime soon, Green Bay should still be in the mix in the NFC this season.