Replacing an iconic quarterback is never easy, just ask Brian Griese or Jay Fiedler. Yet despite some unfortunate comments made in Sports Illustrated, Aaron Rodgers seemed to be in a position to win over his teammates and fan base alike. That is until Brett Favre got an itch that all the Calamine lotion in the world couldn’t soothe.
Rodgers has said all the right things since Favre’s infamous text message became public, and Packer management has all but said that they fully intend to move on without number four. Packer fans, however, are a different story. They love their heroes like Al Davis loves running suits and tacky jewelry. Every newspaper in the state is covering this saga as closely as the presidential election. Coach McCarthy was even drilled with questions about Favre’s return by eleven year olds at a local boys’ and girls’ club.
For an NFL quarterback, his psyche is almost as important as his arm. How will this sideshow affect Rodgers and more importantly, what does this do to a team poised for another deep playoff run?
Aaron Rodgers has been groomed for success in professional football. In a league where young quarterbacks are far too often thrown into the fire, thrown under the bus, and thrown onto the scrapheap all within their first few seasons (see: Carr, David), Rodgers was given the luxury of learning the game from the sidelines. Physically, he has built arm strength and improved a once questionable throwing motion. Mentally, he says the game has slowed down significantly for him as he demonstrated in Dallas last season. And while Favre was at first standoffish in tutoring his future replacement, the two quarterbacks had grown close over the last two seasons and Rogers learned nuances of the game from the future Hall of Famer that would have taken years for him to acquire on his own.
Ted Thompson has also built a team that is ready made for a player in Rodgers’ situation. He’s put together a solid defense that almost always keeps that Packers in any game. His receiving corps is among the best in the league and an emerging running back in Ryan Grant will put Rodgers in the always popular position of “game manager.”
Yet even with all these advantages, success for Rogers is still not guaranteed. First round quarterback busts in the NFL draft occur with roughly the same frequency as Lindsay Lohan rehab stints. Add to that the pressures of playing in the fishbowl that is one of the NFL’s most storied franchises, replacing a legend, and starting your career on Monday Night Football, and it’s easy to see that Rodgers has his work cut out for him.
Then the Favre story breaks. That same day Al Harris is on NFL Live saying he would welcome Favre back with open arms. Packer message boards are clamoring for one more year from the living legend. To see teammates and fans alike rally behind his predecessor can only add to the stress Rodgers already feels. While Thompson and McCarthy have tried to quell the rumors and throw their support to Rogers, that will mean little when 65,000 Lambeau Fieldians are chanting “We want Brett” after Rogers’ first poor game, . . . or interception, . . . or incomplete pass, . . . or lost coin flip.
Teammates too will add to the pressure. Favre commanded a respect from teammates in the huddle, the locker room, and in the media. You never heard a player call out Brett Favre even after a five interception day. Receivers never showed him up on the field after a poor pass. Will that same respect be afforded to number 12? Or will we see a situation similar to what took place early in Daunte Culpepper’s career where there was Moss in one ear and Carter in the other? The window to win a Super Bowl is not a wide one. If, in his teammates minds, Rogers is holding them back, will they too start to clamor for Favre?
The Packers were a team on the cusp of greatness. The youngest team in the NFL combined with a trip to the NFC championship game led many to the conclusion that it was once again the Packers’ turn to rule the NFC North and give Favre one last chance to retire John Elway style. While Favre’s retirement in March led to some questions, many felt that with all but two starters returning, there would be some drop-off, but the Pack could still be a competitive team. Playing in a weak division within a weak conference meant that the Packers’ chances of repeating last year’s success was achievable. Now, Favre’s uncertain future means the Packers have an uncertain future.
An NFL team is a complex and often unstable organism. It doesn’t take much to throw its chemistry out of whack. It’s possible that Favre’s retirement was enough to upset the team chemistry. Then again, it’s possible his reported comeback was just as damaging.
