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Aaron Rodgers has a future full of uncertainty with the Green Bay Packers following the franchise's decision to trade up in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft to select Utah State quarterback Jordan Love. It was a strange move after Rodgers led the team to a 13-3 regular season record and an NFC Championship Game appearance last season.
Many thought the Packers would focus on bringing in more weapons for their superstar quarterback. However, they chose to go a completely different direction. Brian Gutekunst opted to begin planning for the future.
The only move the Packers did make to improve the weapons around Rodgers this offseason was signing free agent wide receiver Devin Funchess. Unfortunately, he chose to opt out of the season due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. Now, the Packers are left with relatively the same supporting cast that they had for Rodgers last season.
During the 2019 season, Rodgers completed 62 percent of his pass attempts for 4,002 yards, 26 touchdowns, and four interceptions. Those numbers aren't bad at all, but the media started calling Rodgers “washed up” and “no longer an elite NFL quarterback.”
With an offseason full of criticism and the Packers drafting a new quarterback, the pressure is on Rodgers to perform at a high level this season. Davante Adams is a bonafide superstar, but behind him the Packers are going to rely on Allen Lazard, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Equanimeous St. Brown. Those guys don't exactly make up the most impressive supporting cast.
All of that being said, can Rodgers return to his superstar level of play in Week 1 against the division rival Minnesota Vikings?
Minnesota has put together a solid all-around defense, but their secondary is very inexperienced. At this point in time, they are projected to start both Mike Hughes and Holton Hill. That bodes well for a big game from Rodgers.
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Aaron Rodgers is still an elite quarterback, no matter what the media tries to say or spin. Green Bay is still very confident with him leading the way, even though they did draft a young quarterback for the future.
From a fantasy football perspective, Rodgers is a must-play this week. Yannick Ngakoue and the pass-rush will be something to keep an eye on, but the secondary won't be able to slow the Packers down. Rodgers is going to put up an MVP-caliber performance.
It would be reasonable to expect around 300 to 350 passing yards and three touchdowns from Rodgers. He could very easily up that number to four touchdown passes. In addition to those numbers, Rodgers will continue taking care of the football at an elite level and will not record a single turnover against the Vikings.
Green Bay may be taking a major risk by heading into the season without adding another proven wide receiver. However, Lazard did show some big things last year that may make the Packers think he is capable of a bigger and more consistent role. Valdes-Scantling is also a receiver that Rodgers has had nothing but good things to say about.
Aaron Jones is going to have another good performance against the Vikings and could come into play in the passing game as well. His ability to make plays in the passing game was proven last season. Rodgers should look to Jones quite often.
Expect to see Aaron Rodgers play like his old superstar self in Week 1 against the Vikings. The Packers may not have added enough to make their offense consistently elite, but a motivated version of Rodgers can make up for a lot of that. Green Bay fans should be excited to see what Rodgers has in store this season.
