The Old Man And The Mirror: Aaron Rodgers Meets The Quarterback He Used To Be

It each started truthful well. And past it fell apart.

For 2 quarters, it looked for illustration Aaron Rodgers mightiness conjure 1 of those nights, nan benignant that ends pinch a smirk, a wink, and a reminder that he tin lucifer immoderate of nan league’s young pups. It was nan first clip successful his profession that he played against Green Bay, wherever he spent astir 2 decades, won 4 MVPs and a lone Super Bowl. But nan NFL seldom cares for nostalgia.

The Packers’ 35–25 triumph complete nan Steelers became thing much revealing: a image of wherever some teams – and some quarterbacks – stand.

The Steelers took a 16-7 lead into nan half. The crippled was played astatine their speed. They ran nan shot effectively, Rodgers dispersed it astir efficiently and kicker Chris Boswell nailed 3 50-plus efforts to return nan lead.

But things flipped successful nan third. The Packers person a young, diversion defense pinch All-Pro-caliber players astatine each level. And for 2 quarters, they made Rodgers look old. Up front, Micah Parsons ripped done double and triple teams. In nan middle, Edgerrin Cooper and Quay Walker patrolled pinch velocity and range, thumping everything successful sight. On nan backmost end, nan Packers’ secondary – pinch an mean property of 26 – flew to nan ball, anchored by heavy information Xavier McKinney.

It was a crisp contrast. Rodgers’ Steelers are built successful a different image: heavy, methodical, defined by building alternatively than imaginative freedom. Their discourtesy runs done jumbo unit packages, leaning connected nan crushed crippled and trusting Rodgers to person connected 3rd downs. It useful erstwhile everything is tidy. But erstwhile nan hit is disrupted aliases they autumn down nan sticks, this type of Rodgers tin nary longer crook a crippled to his will.

He’s 41 now, and nan signs are visible. The encephalon still sees nan openings, but nan legs can’t rather support up. His property has hamstrung his creativity; nan moments wherever he utilized to escape, reset, and improvise person waned. Rodgers remains 1 of nan astir businesslike quarterbacks successful nan league. He is money successful nan speedy game, getting nan shot retired successful a flash to anyone and everyone. He vanished nan nighttime 24 of 36 for 219 yards and 2 touchdowns. That ratio is simply a mediocre substitute for nan magic of old.

There are still glimpses present and there, for illustration his early explosive down nan sideline to Roman Wilson. It was a throwback to nan aged Rodgers, bouncing astir nan pocket, extending a play and whipping a heavy changeable beyond nan coverage. A fewer plays later, he deed DK Metcalf connected a slant for a touchdown, nan benignant of timing propulsion that only looks elemental because he’s made it truthful for 18 years.

That version of Rodgers remains dangerous. He tin triumph games. But aft nan half, nan Packers’ defense cranked up to a different level. They dared Rodgers to clasp nan ball, flight nan pouch and make plays connected nan move. He couldn’t support up.

Rodgers spent nan 2nd half pinch his eyes connected Parsons, moreover erstwhile location were options down nan section aliases Parsons wasn’t successful his area code. The Green Bay-era Rodgers would person moved and recovered unfastened targets. He’d person pointed and laughed astatine Parsons. But connected Sunday, he couldn’t debar nan near-constant unit and was harassed connected much than 50% of his dropbacks and dropped 3 times.

This is really it goes pinch ageing players: nan mind is still willing, but nan assemblage isn’t ever able. Rodgers has created much retired of building complete nan past 3 weeks than astatine immoderate clip successful nan past 2 seasons, but against 1 of nan league’s amended fronts, escaping without being rocked was his only victory.

Instead, he was forced to watch Jordan Love do his champion belief of peak-Rodgers connected nan different broadside of nan field. Love was crisp and decisive, completing 29 of 37 passes for 360 yards and 3 touchdowns, spreading nan shot to 10 different receivers. At 1 point, he had completed 20 passes successful a row, taking nan easy worldly underneath, ripping heaters down nan section and showing disconnected his playmaking chops.

“He played great, played fantastic,” Rodgers said of Love post-game. “He’s had a really bully season. He’s been really businesslike pinch nan football. He’s opportunistic, though. I felt for illustration he was very diligent tonight. They took nan tally solutions. He took nan checkdowns, moved successful nan pouch well. He played outstanding.”

For nan Packers, this is what advancement looks like. They person nan look of a squad gelling astatine nan correct moment, 1 that tin power nan crippled connected either broadside of nan ball. For nan Steelers, it was different reminder that acquisition unsocial doesn’t guarantee anything. Their scheme – to grind, to thin connected veterans and spot their defense – tin only spell truthful far. They person nan league’s astir costly defense, but their big-name secondary was carved unfastened by Love each night. Their roster sits successful nan league’s acquainted mediate ground: tin of beating anyone, susceptible to everyone.

Still, moreover successful defeat, this was Rodgers’ night. We person lived pinch galore variations of Rodgers complete his 21-year career. Young Rodgers. Post-Favre Rodgers. Arrogant Rodgers. MVP Rodgers. Defiant Rodgers. Kooky Rodgers. Sad-Jets Rodgers. The is-he-finished Rodgers. But Sunday was a caller take. Rodgers was almost wistful. He didn’t snarl astatine a erstwhile team, arsenic he did successful Week One aft beating nan Jets. Asked astir nan “Go Pack Go” chants that filled nan Steelers’ stadium arsenic nan crippled slipped away, he smiled. “I heard that chant for 18 years,” he said. “Packers fans recreation really well. First clip successful a while I’ve utilized silent count for a location game. That’s a in installments to those Packers fans.”

This seemed like a Rodgers astatine peace. He recognizes wherever he’s at. The limb is still there. His encephalon still useful astatine double speed. But football’s timepiece keeps ticking – and he tin nary longer lucifer nan league’s champion throw-for-throw. In seeking to subordinate nan uncommon nine of quarterbacks who person beaten each 32 teams, he fell short. And he watched from nan sideline arsenic he knowledgeable thing he inflicted connected nan convention for 18 years: a Green Bay backmost shredding a defense pinch a operation of precision and wow throws. The passing of nan torch was almost excessively connected nan nose.

MVP of nan week

Tua Tagovailoa talks pinch his other number, Kirk Cousins, aft Sunday’s game. Photograph: Mike Stewart/AP

Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Miami Dolphins. For a week, Tagovailoa was a punchline. After nan worst capacity of his career, he looked adrift, unsure of himself, his squad and really agelong he would stay successful Miami. Then Sunday happened. The Dolphins rolled into Atlanta and correct complete nan Falcons, 34-10, down a throwback capacity from their quarterback.

Tagovailoa completed 20 of 26 passes for 206 yards, 4 touchdowns, nary interceptions, and a passer standing of 138.6. He was businesslike erstwhile successful hit and showed disconnected his playmaking chops retired of structure, throwing a dart connected nan tally to Malik Washington to springiness nan Dolphins an early lead.

Seven days earlier, nan headlines were astir excuses and errant throws. Tagovailoa had tried to explicate distant his struggles by half-heartedly lobbing teammates nether nan bus, past doubled down pinch a scattershot show against Cleveland that ended pinch him connected nan bench. That was nan type pinch 2 moving eyes. This week, Tagovailoa played done an infection that near his near oculus swollen. “Probably 1 of nan worst experiences I’ve had successful position of waking up,” Tagovailoa said post-game. “I’m conscionable gladsome I was capable to spell retired location and play.”

Somehow, one-eyed Tagovailoa saw everything clearly. Back successful his domiciled arsenic facilitator, he helped threat Miami’s three-game skid and, for now, silenced nan sound astir his occupation security.

Stat of nan week

Myles Garrett has been superb but moreover he can’t prevention nan Browns. Photograph: Sue Ogrocki/AP

Five. That’s nan number of sacks Myles Garrett put up against nan Patriots. The champion pass-rusher successful nan convention put connected a show successful New England, contempt nan Browns being leveled 32-13. Garett had a hat-trick of sacks successful nan first half, 2 of them successful nan reddish area to extremity drives and 1 forcing a fumble. He vanished pinch 7 pressures, 1 of them flushing Drake Maye from nan pouch and forcing nan backmost into an interception.

Garrett is simply a one-man avalanche. But watching him annihilate nan Patriots while nan Browns are blown retired connected nan scoreboard felt for illustration nan cleanable microcosm for his career. Do you deliberation he regrets rescinding his offseason waste and acquisition request successful speech for a bumper payday? Garrett cited a “desire to win” erstwhile he asked retired of Cleveland. Nothing has changed since then, isolated from for his market-resetting contract. Even erstwhile he puts together a historical performance, nan Browns cannot bent pinch upper-tier teams.

Video of nan week

When your team’s proprietor publicly criticizes your expertise to propulsion nan guardant pass, what do you do? You telephone for your running backmost to propulsion nan shot pinch nan crippled connected nan line, obviously. That’s what Aaron Glenn and nan Jets did to complete a comeback, 39-38 triumph complete nan Bengals.

The chutzpah!

After Woody Johnson’s critique, Justin Fields put together his astir businesslike crippled of nan season, completing 65% of his passes. That whitethorn opportunity much astir nan Bengals’ defense than nan Jets’ offense, but Fields was capable to return advantage of Cincy’s ropey group successful nan 4th quarter, starring 3 touchdown drives successful nan 4th quarter.

Credit to Glenn, too. Down 14 precocious successful nan game, nan Jets scored and past went for two. The first effort was ruled short, but Glenn challenged nan ruling and it was overturned, making it a six-point game. Both decisions – going for it and nan situation – paid off, pinch nan precocious touchdown allowing nan Jets to footwear an other constituent to return nan lead.

Glenn has had a touch of Nathaniel Hackett-itis early successful his caput coaching tenure. He has consistently bungled nan timepiece and mismanaged his timeouts. But pinch his squad staring down different disappointing loss, he took nan gutsy, albeit analytically minded move, and it hit.

Elsewhere astir nan league

Josh Allen was successful nan mediate of nan action, arsenic usual. Photograph: Erik Verduzco/AP

-- It was different historical time for Josh Allen. He became only nan 2nd backmost successful convention history pinch 70 profession rushing touchdowns, rushing for 2 scores arsenic nan Bills hit nan Panthers 40-9. Coming disconnected a bye, nan Bills’ discourtesy was stodgy early. But their defense forced turnovers, and nan violative statement manhandled nan Panthers. Bye weeks are a clip for teams to self-scout. It feels notable that Buffalo opted to tally their discourtesy done their 2 astir reliable options: moving backmost James Cook and receiver Khalil Shakir. The brace mixed for 304 yards and 3 touchdowns connected 25 touches. It coiled up a blowout. But nan usage of Cook and Shakir signaled that nan Bills will beryllium progressive earlier nan waste and acquisition deadline, hunting for different explosive receiver.

-- There was much tush-push contention successful Philadelphia. On fourth-and-one, Jalen Hurts leapt guardant connected nan push and reached nan shot retired to clear nan statement to gain. As he reached, nan shot was ripped retired by nan Giants’ Kayvon Thibodeaux. But nan officials blew nan whistle for guardant progress, canceling retired Thibodeaux’s turnover.

It was a ridiculous call. The shove already has capable ingrained advantages without officials calling guardant advancement connected a play designed to person a subordinate pushed forward. It eliminates immoderate consequence for Hurts erstwhile he reaches retired for nan first-down marker. Add that to missing blatant mendacious starts, and nan play becomes virtually indefensible. If Thibodeaux’s rip is not a fumble, past nan lawsuit against nan push will nary longer beryllium astir nan tone of nan play (a laughable claim, anyway) but alternatively that nan officials and nan rulebook are not equipped to grip it.

-- The Jets’ triumph was overshadowed by the decease of their longtime center Nick Mangold, who was seeking a kidney transplant, astatine nan property of 41. Mangold spent his full profession pinch nan Jets and was universally celebrated crossed nan NFL acknowledgment to his joke and approachability. He was besides an fantabulous player: a seven-time Pro Bowler, a two-time All-Pro and a beardown campaigner for induction successful nan hallway of fame. He was joined pinch 4 children. “One of nan kindest group I’ve ever met,” wrote erstwhile Jets moving backmost Thomas Jones connected societal media. “One of nan top interior linemen to ever play nan game.”

-- The Colts wagon rolled to 7-1 down different immense time from Jonathan Taylor. Indy’s moving backmost scored 3 touchdowns successful a 38-14 triumph complete nan Titans, marking nan 4th clip this twelvemonth he’s scored 3 touchdowns successful a game. Eight weeks in, Taylor should beryllium adjacent nan apical of immoderate MVP standings.

-- The Cowboys were thumped 44-22 by nan Broncos. For nan first clip this season, Dak Prescott looked frazzled, struggling to break down Denver’s blitz-and-disguise defense. With nan discourtesy struggling, Dallas had nary chance. The defense spent different Sunday day struggling to slow down nan run, seldom worrying nan quarterback, missing tackles, blowing assignments and failing to screen anyone down nan field. It feels for illustration nan masterplan of fielding a mini-Bengals successful nan NFC is not going to work.

-- The Giants mislaid moving backmost Cam Skattebo, who had go a cult leader successful his rookie season, to a gruesome ankle wounded successful their conclusion to nan Eagles. He will almost surely miss nan remainder of nan season. “I saw him connected nan crushed pinch his limb trapped,” said Giants violative lineman Greg Van Roten. “When he pulled it out, you could spot his ft was nan incorrect way. Obviously, that is not normal. I conscionable wanted him to enactment down, called nan trainers out, get nan cart. Put nan [ankle] backmost basically. It’s difficult to spot worldly for illustration that.”

-- How astir nan Ravens? They were without Lamar Jackson again after nan backmost was a precocious scratch, but recovered capable from Snoop Huntley to seashore past nan Bears 30-16. Baltimore’s defense yet turned up, stymying Chicago’s resurgent tally crippled and holding Caleb Williams to a 44% occurrence rate. It was a must-win for nan Ravens, who are now 2-5 aft a nightmarish commencement to nan year.