On Sunday, September 25, QBs Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady will battle head-to-head for the fifth, and perhaps final, time.
Brady is 45 and Rodgers is 38, and the self-styled “Golden Boy” Brady has already retired and come back once. It’s quite possible that this season truly represents Brady’s farewell tour, as the GOAT gallops off into the sunset (again).
Brady already has a lucrative deal in place to work in the Fox Sports booth once he hangs up his pads, but this weekend he duels with reigning back-to-back NFL MVP Rodgers.
Rodgers is 1-3 all-time against Brady, including a heartbreaking 31-26 home loss in the 2020 NFC Championship Game. Brady and the Buccaneers advanced past the Packers en route to Tampa Bay’s second Super Bowl victory (and Brady’s seventh).
Rodgers won league MVP that season, and repeated the feat again in 2021.
Overall, Rodgers has been voted the NFL’s MVP four times (2011, 2014, 2020, 2021). Brady has only won the award three times (2007, 2010, 2017), but has been named Super Bowl MVP five times out of his 10 total trips to the big dance (both NFL records).
Notably, Rodgers was named MVP in the only Super Bowl that he played. Rodgers threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns in Super Bowl XLV, leading Green Bay past Pittsburgh, 31-25. Who will represent the NFC in Super Bowl LVII this coming February? It would be unwise to overlook either of these legendary clutch gunners.
Rodgers and Brady each have platinum resumes, and are guaranteed first-ballot Hall of Famers whenever they do decide to call it a career. Despite all of their combined trips around the sun, Rodgers and Brady are still performing at an elite level. No head coach or defensive coordinator wants to see the Packers or Buccaneers on the schedule.
Rodgers and Brady are two of the most respected and feared signal callers in today’s NFL, and this is a statement year for both of them.
Brady is publicly navigating complicated personal issues amidst the rigors of playing professional football, while working to advance his legacy.
Rodgers lost his top target, WR Davante Adams, in the offseason when “Mr. January” left his cheesehead behind to join the Las Vegas Raiders via a trade.
Three days after Rodgers signed a massive new contract with the Packers, Adams was traded to Vegas in exchange for the 22nd and 53rd overall picks in the 2022 NFL Draft.
These draft choices were ultimately cashed in to select Georgia ILB Quay Walker and North Dakota State WR Christian Watson.
Week 1 proved to be a dud for Rodgers and Green Bay in Minnesota, but The Pack got on track with a 27-10 victory over the Bears in Week 2.
Now Rodgers has the Buccaneers’ stout defense in his sights.
Tampa Bay is undefeated, following two road wins vs Dallas and New Orleans. Heading into this Week 3 matchup, the Buccaneers have the top defensive unit in the league.
Look for Rodgers to have laser focus while working to pick apart the Tampa D.
The Bucs are currently favored to win (-3, O/U 44), but they’ll have their hands full in their home opener.
Tampa’s stud WR Mike Evans is serving a one-game suspension for his brawl with Saints’ CB Marshon Lattimore last week. Meanwhile, WRs Chris Godwin, Julio Jones, and Russell Gage are all dealing with injuries.
The Packers’ defense is in a strong position to achieve success against a potentially wobbly Bucs’ offensive unit.
However, both Rodgers and Brady have an uncanny ability to complete passes to whoever lines up with them. The key to this game will be to minimize mistakes.
Until now, no NFL game has featured two starting quarterbacks with six Super Bowl MVP awards between them. Perhaps this season will end with another piece of big-game hardware going up on the mantle for Rodgers or Brady. The battle rages.
