Everyone has been drinking the Aaron Rodgers Kool-Aid this week.
Some people are saying he’s now in the MVP race. Others are saying he’s playing as well as he did in 2011, when he won the MVP.
So you get the picture.
Is Rodgers really in the MVP race? Debatable.
He’s in it as far as the media needs more than one or two guys to talk about so they can write “interesting think pieces.” In all honesty, I don’t see how he’d win it over DeMarco Murray, Peyton Manning or even J.J. Watt at this point.
That would be my top three, in order. I might even throw Jordy Nelson in there for shits and giggles.
What isn’t debatable is whether Rodgers is playing like he was in 2011. We’ve got stats to pour over, so we can give you a definitive answer on that.
And it is: not quite.
Through seven games in 2011, Rodgers had thrown for 2,372 yards, 20 touchdowns and 3 interceptions, completing 71.5 percent of his passes.
Through the first seven games of this season, Rodgers has thrown for 1,674 yards, 18 touchdowns and one interception, completing 66.8 percent of his passes.
The only area where Rodgers has improved is he’s thrown fewer interceptions.
Some people have argued that Rodgers has become more efficient since 2011, but that isn’t really the case. He’s completing a significantly lower percentage of his passes, at least through seven games.
That 2011 completion percentage would dip to 68.3 for the entire 2011 season.
That isn’t to say Rodgers isn’t having a nice season this year. He is.
We’re not quite sure it’s an MVP season though and he’ll have to have a blistering second half if he’s going to come close to those 2011 numbers.
He blew out the Vikings and Panthers in the first quarter and essentially did nothing after the fact. He’d have easily exceeded or at the very least matched 2011 stats if he got 6 quarters of competitive play back.
If he maintains this level of play he will 100% be in the running. Demarco will sprain his vagina next week with how many carries he’s getting and Peyton will be the biggest threat to the title of MVP.
Murray needs a new big contract so I don’t think he’s going to sprain his vagina anytime soon. Wait till he gets his new contract.
Everyone seems to be obsessed that his yards are down, but as far as I can see that doesn’t matter at all. I’ll take a 4 game win streak over a bunch of stats any day
What I’d like to see: Rodgers throwing behind a line of Gregg, Skoronski, Ringo, Jerry Kramer, Thurston, and Ron Kramer. He could set records that would never be broken, except for more than half the time he’d be handing the ball off to Taylor, Hornung, Pitts and Travis Jackson.
You’re joking, right? Playing behind a line of slow, 250 lb. linemen would be an express ticket to the injured reserve list.
Were really nitpicking today with this post. Rodgers is on a similar run that I had back in 84. I ended up second team all America that year. Trust me the shine wears off, enjoy it Packer fans.
Watt is not an MVP candidate because 1) he plays defense and 2) he plays for Houston.
Murray has an incredible line that he’s running behind. He’s certainly a possibility.
I’m kind of sick of Peyton Manning.
And Monty, when we talk about efficiency we’re not talking about completion percentage. We’re talking about points and TDs per opportunity. He’s got way less passes but about the same number of TDs.
Looking ahead on the schedule I see plenty of opportunities for Rodgers to pad his stats. One big difference I see is passing yardage, but that can be attributed to the fact they aren’t getting into shootouts week in and week out like they did in 2011. Which speaks volumes to what the defense is doing this year as opposed to 2011. Better team overall than that one. I still don’t trust the run defense but they have 9 weeks left to make me a believer.
i’d prefer to see 2011 compared with just the last 4 games (since DET) because that’s when AR said “OK, now we do things my way.” i suspect he’s on a better pace vs 2011 across the board since then, and that by end of season he’s all anyone is going to be talking about when it comes to MVP. he’s probably the best QB who’s ever played the game. i live in Pittsburgh. i’m a Steeler fan. but i cannot deny science.
The Defense is better this year than in 2011.
5% lower completion rate is “signifcant”? That’s 5 fewer passes out of 100, which is about 3 games worth. I disagree with that one.
He has one interception? I saw that pick in Seattle. Nelson had it right in his mitts and it bounced off and up into,a,waiting she hawk? How can that be counted as on Rodgers? He is so patient that he will risk a sack before gunning it up for grabs. His interception pct. is on track for the lowest ever for a career in the modern nfl dome stadium era. Must have learned that by watching as faves backup all those seasons where favre gunslinged them out of the playoffs?