The word prolific gets thrown out there on occasion but quarterback Aaron Rodgers certainly fits the description. Incredibly, he is now in his 10th season as the starting signal-caller for the Green Bay Packers. A late first-round draft choice in 2005, the productive pro took a back seat to Pro Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre for three seasons and barely saw the field. That all changed in 2008 when the latter was dealt to the New York Jets. Since then, Rodgers has done nothing but produce.
Latest milestone
His latest milestone appeared to go under the radar on Sunday night in Atlanta.
With a one-yard throw to running back Ty Montgomery with 5:51 remaining in an eventual 34-23 loss to the Falcons, Rodgers became the 11th player in league annals to total at least 300 touchdown passes. Now keep in mind that in his first three seasons with the Green Bay Packers, the 33-year-old performer played in only seven games as a reserve and threw for one score. In any case, his total of 300 TD passes have come in only 144 contests. Comprehend that for a moment. That’s a career average of better than two aerial scores per outing. Just ponder these figures for a moment. Dating back to the start of the 2011 season, one year after the club captured Super Bowl XLV, Rodgers has thrown an incredible 213 touchdown passes (compared to only 42 interceptions) in a total of 90 regular season games.
Short list
If you are wondering who the 10 other players to throw at least 300 TD passes during their NFL careers are, it’s not a hard list to figure out. Nonetheless, it’s quite an impressive group, led by the amazing Peyton Manning (539), Favre (508) and a pair of current performers in New Orleans Saints hurler Drew Brees (468) and five-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady (459) of the New England Patriots.
Those five players are followed by Pro Football Hall of Famers Dan Marino (420) and Fran Tarkenton (342). Then comes the fabled quarterback class of 2004 in Eli Manning (321), Philip Rivers (318) and Ben Roethlisberger (305). Another Hall of Famer in John Elway (300) rounds out the 11 men on this amazing list.
Still, Rodgers’ amazing accomplishment on Sunday took a back seat to yet another loss in Atlanta.
For three times in less than a calendar year, the Green Bay Packers have lost three times to the Falcons. And Mike McCarthy’s team has watched Atlanta’s Matt Ryan throw for eight TD passes and zero interceptions in helping his team score a combined 111 points in those wins. Perhaps that’s one reason Rodgers’ special moment was lost in yet another loss to the defending NFC champions.