There’s no need to go over Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ subpar 2015 season again. We’ve beaten that into the ground.
One thing that was unsettling about it was Rodgers’ lack of accuracy. QB1 seemingly went from the most accurate passer in the game — maybe in history — to just run-of-the-mill in that category in the space of a year. You saw it when you watched him play and the evidence is also right there in his career-low 60.7 completion percentage.
What was the issue?
Rodgers said it was footwork.
“The times when I am not perfect with my feet are the times when I am not going to be as accurate,” Rodgers said. “It’s trying to continue to strive for perfection with balance and rhythm and footwork. When I do that, I am at my best and I am very accurate and I can throw around 70 percent. When those things slide, when the rush affects me, when I don’t stand in some throws, occasionally there is going to be a lack of accuracy, and when you pair that with some drops and some missed assignments that we had last year. Then you’re going to have some of the poor plays that we had. I have always been a rep player and the more times I work on those fundamentals, the better I am going to be when the games roll around.”
It always pains us a little bit to hear Rodgers pass the buck as he did with the “some drops” and “some missed assignments” comments there.
You can look at that one of two ways. Like Greg Jennings and Donald Driver have in the past — that Rodgers doesn’t stand up for his guys or take pressure off them. Or, that he’s a perfectionist and expects everyone else to be as meticulous as he is.
Frankly, both are true.
Rodgers has established a high standard and as he’s matured, he’s been vocal about holding his teammates to that standard.
Regardless, if Rodgers is going to return to form in 2016, the accuracy needs to return as well.
We expect that it will.