While Drew Brees may have the most passing yardage and Tom Brady has the most jewelry, neither of those two stars are the greatest of all time. Aaron Rodgers, however, possesses skills that neither one of those aforementioned future Hall of Famers have.
At age 34, Rodgers still has plenty of time to catch Brees (39) and Brady (41) in the statistics department. He may never surpass the yardage precedent those two players have set but that's in large part thanks to Brett Favre, who hung around until the end of the 2007 season, delaying Rodgers' rise to stardom.
Rodgers was first given the nod in 2008, making his first career start after Favre's departure to the New York Jets. Since then, he's been arguably the most dominant signal-caller the game has ever seen.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3aZdoN6g9Y
If the Packers didn't such a terrible defense, with the exception of Clay Matthews, he'd have more than just one Super Bowl ring.
Mobility
The one skill that elevates Rodgers far above his competition is his mobility. When defenses play Aaron Rodgers, it's about keeping him in the pocket just as much as it is trying to defend him through the air.
He can throw off on the run, off his back foot, across his body and everything else in the book, as he did against the Seahawks last Thursday night, when he completed a ridiculous 54-yard heave to Robert Tonyan for a first-quarter score.
He still runs around like he's still in his twenties, picking up key first downs and finding the goal line. He's rushed for over 2,800 yards and 25 rushing touchdowns throughout his career, numbers that keep defenses guessing.
A new wave of quarterbacks capable of scrambling have entered the league since Rodgers was drafted back in 2005. Russell Wilson, Cam Newton, Deshaun Watson, Marcus Mariota and Baker Mayfield all came into the league after Rodgers and are trying to do their best impersonation of the Green Bay signal caller. That speaks to how game-changing his talent was and continues to be.
Ability to Play Through Pain
Considering all of the hits Rodgers takes as both a passer and a runner, it's amazing that he's only missed 18 games in his career.
Though he's currently playing with a damaged knee that he injured back in Week 1, it hasn't kept him off the field for any of the team's ten games. It's appeared bothersome at several times this season but Rodgers hasn't let it stop him from running around.
It took a broken collarbone to knock Rodgers out for most of last season, though he attempted to play through it down the stretch. He threw in the towel when the Packers were officially eliminated after Week 15, sitting out the final two games in favor of a healthier Brett Hundley.
Throughout his magnificent career, Rodgers has dealt with injuries to his knees, shoulders and ankles but he's played through pretty much all of them. Even when he's looked off due to the injuries, he still somehow packs the stat sheet as if he's fully healthy.
Loyalty
Rodgers has had some of the greatest fourth quarter comebacks in NFL history, adding to his legendary resume. However, he's just 12 for 42 (as of September) on those comeback attempts in his career, even though his poor 3 for 19 start through 2011 contributed greatly to that.
He's stuck with the Packers through good times and bad. The front office has done little in the way of acquiring defenders to make sure Rodgers isn't scoring points only to have his defense cede more.
Virtually any other quarterback would've asked for a trade if their team was so negligent. Outside of acquiring Jimmy Graham last offseason, the Packers haven't spent all that much on making number twelve happy. Davante Adams and Jordy Nelson were some awesome home grown talents but the team never looked to the open market for the other side of the ball.
That's the main reason Green Bay only has one ring during Rodgers' reign under center. The offense works magically and the defense was Swiss cheese. Outside of Clay Matthews, there's A.J. Hawk, the tail end of Charles Woodson's career, the first few years of Ha-Ha Clinton Dix and flashes of B.J. Raji and Nick Collins, Rodgers hasn't had enough to hold up the team. Six names in ten years of starting just doesn't fit the bill.
To this day, he's never worn and likely will never wear another NFL uniform. Even though his defense has been so M.I.A. that he's got a single win in February, he continues to stick around in the smallest market in the NFL. If that's not loyalty, it's hard to pinpoint what is.
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