Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers won his fourth NFL MVP award at the NFL Honors ceremony on Thursday night.
Rodgers had the highest passer rating in the NFL and guided the Packers to a league-best 13 victories. The Packers went 13-2 in regular-season games that he started and finished. Rodgers had 37 touchdowns and two interceptions in his final 15 starts after tossing two interceptions in an embarrassing Week 1 defeat to New Orleans.
Rodgers began by praising the organization, as well as general manager Brian Gutekunst and coach Matt LaFleur, for allowing him to have back-to-back seasons.
“Appreciate you, buddy,” Rodgers said of LaFleur after giving him grief about his eyebrows.
He went on to thank his teammates and the long-lasting bonds they had formed. He gave the trophy to two persons who died in 2021: Maura Mandt, the ESPYs’ longtime producer, and Ted Thompson, the man who picked him.
When questioned about a fourth MVP in January, Rodgers said: “This has been one of my favorite years of football. It’s hard to think of a year that I’ve enjoyed more than this one, even with all the adversity.
“I’ve told the guys this a few times when I’ve had the opportunity to speak to them pregame, one of the greatest satisfactions in life is being held to a standard by your teammates and living up to that standard. And I know when I take the field, that there’s a standard those guys hold me to, and there’s an expectation of performance, and to be able to go out there and perform week after week, the way that I want to perform has been extremely meaningful to me. I’m thankful for this opportunity to still be starting here in Green Bay and to lead this team and to play at a high level, and to continue to grow, through the adversity, through the ups and downs, the frustrations and the successes and the triumphs. I’ve really enjoyed this season, and I would definitely love to finish out the year strong and win my fourth.”
Here are ten things you probably didn’t know about Aaron Rodgers’ season.
#1
Rodgers is the fourth player in NFL history to win three MVP awards, joining running back Jim Brown (1957, 1958, 1965), quarterback Johnny Unitas (1959, 1964, 1967), quarterback Brett Favre (1995–1997), and quarterback Tom Brady (2007, 2010, 2017).
Rodgers has moved away from the group and is now alone in second place thanks to his fourth MVP. Peyton Manning has earned a total of five MVP awards, four with the Indianapolis Colts (2003, 2004, 2008, and 2009) and one with the Denver Broncos (2013).
Manning and Brady had a ten-year gap between their first and last MVP awards. The fourth MVP award for Rodgers came ten years after his first.
#2
With a fantastic final run to the season, Rodgers cemented his place in the MVP race. Rodgers finished the season with seven straight games with two or more touchdown passes and zero interceptions, despite a fractured toe that limited his practice time. This is the NFL’s second-longest winning streak. Tom Brady did it nine times in a row in 2010. During his run, Rodgers threw 20 touchdown passes, which he will continue next season. Brady had a total of 24 touchdown passes.
#3
Being MVP entails more than just having the best stats. It’s the “V” for Valuable, which is the center letter. According to ManGamesLost.Com, the Packers were the second-most injured team this season. David Bakhtiari was the most crucial injury of the NFL season in terms of player worth and games missed, Za’Darius Smith was second, and Jaire Alexander was ninth. Rodgers’ performance was clearly crucial to the team’s 13-win season.
#4
Rodgers led the Packers to a 13-2 record in games he started and finished. Jordan Love started against Kansas City and played the second half at Detroit for the Packers, who were 0-2 overall.
#5
Incredibly, being the Most Valuable Player of the NFL season doesn’t mean being the Most Valuable Player of the NFL postseason. No MVP has won the award in the same year he won the Super Bowl since Kurt Warner with the St. Louis Rams in 1999.
#6
Rodgers joined Steve Young as the only quarterbacks to earn the Percentage Triple Crown of completion percentage, touchdown percentage, and interception percentage while topping the league in passer rating since 1940. Rodgers’ completion percentage was third this season, but he was first in touchdown percentage, interception percentage, and quarterback rating.
Since 1960, just five people have done it: Rodgers in 2020 and 2021, Tom Brady in 2010, Young in 1992, and Ken Anderson in 1981.
#7
The MVP conversation between Rodgers and Tom Brady of the Buccaneers is fascinating. Brady led the NFL in passing yards and touchdowns with 5,316 and 43, respectively. The Buccaneers finished 13-4 as well.
By the numbers, Brady dominated Rodgers (and everyone else) because he threw 47 more passes than any other quarterback and 188 more passes than Rodgers. If Rodgers had the same amount of tries as Brady, he would have passed for 5,572 yards and 50 touchdowns, breaking Brady’s record of 494 completions.
#8
There have been 13 seasons in which a quarterback has thrown at least 400 passes while having an interception percentage under 1.0. Rodgers has five of those seasons under his belt, including 2021, when he led the NFL with a 0.75 percent interception rate. The only other quarterback with multiple seasons is Tom Brady (who has done so twice).
Rodgers has ended four seasons with an interception rate of less than 1.0 percent. No other quarterback has ever done it twice in a row.
#9
Perhaps Rodgers should switch insurance company and pitch for the one that emphasizes safety. He not only had the fewest interceptions in the NFL, but he also didn’t lose a fumble. Rodgers had a league-low four turnovers as a result of this. Russell Wilson of Seattle was a distant second with seven, despite missing three games due to injury.
Any discussion of the Packers’ quarterbacking future must include turnovers. Rodgers only had four turnovers in 561 throwing plays (531 attempts, 30 sacks). Jordan Love had four fumbles on 65 passing plays (three interceptions, one fumble).
#10
Rodgers tossed 9.25 touchdown passes for every interception, more than twice Kirk Cousins’ second-place 4.71. (33 touchdowns, seven interceptions). That’s the NFL’s seventh-best performance ever. There have been 12 seasons in NFL history when a quarterback’s touchdown-to-interception ratio was at least 6.50. Rodgers has a half-dozen of such seasons under his belt, including four straight.
One stat that you can take away from this: In NFL history, there have been six seasons with 6.50 touchdowns per interception and 4,000+ passing yards. Rodgers possesses all six.
“There’s obviously a faction, based on the response when I tested positive, that want to demonize me for my decision to be unvaccinated. That’s the environment that we’re living in. There is not room for dissenting opinions or individual freedoms or people to have a different view. … I think the MVP should be about the most valuable player on the team. A lot of times it goes to the best player on the best team, and we’re the best team. So, if voters want to use the offseason or don’t like my stance being unvaccinated, that’s their prerogative. I don’t think it’s right, but that’s their prerogative.”
Meanwhile, the Pro Football Hall of Fame nominated legendary Packers safety LeRoy Butler. Coach of the Year went to Mike Vrabel of the Tennessee Titans, who beat out LaFleur.
Image Credit: Getty
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