Green Bay Packers Doomed Unless Aaron Rodgers Plays Perfect

Expecting perfection from any player, especially a quarterback really isn’t fair in the NFL.  Yet that is what the Green Bay Packers have been getting lately from Aaron Rodgers.  The 31-year old quarterback is in the midst of arguably the most efficient season in league history with 36 touchdowns to just four turnovers.  That kind of ratio is absolutely unheard of and further validates Rodgers’ stake as MVP for the 2014 season.

However, his brilliance has masked one very key point about the Packers.  He has to play perfect.  Why?  Green Bay isn’t nearly as good if he doesn’t.  Here’s a notable stat that can become magnified against better teams in the playoffs.  The Packers are 1-2 this season when Rodgers turns the football over in a game.  Part of the reason is the defense.  In spite of having some standout performers like Clay Matthews, Julius Peppers and Mike Daniels it’s just not a very good unit.  For the season they are 26th overall, allowing 129 rushing yards per game and 23.4 points.  Whenever they’ve run into top quarterbacks like Matt Ryan or Drew Brees, they’ve been exposed pretty bad.

Aaron Rodgers being the superstar he is has managed to keep talk about that quiet by putting up 35-40 points per game.  Yet the message is pretty clear.  If the Green Bay Packers are going to compete for the Super Bowl in January, it will have to be thanks to a flawless run by their quarterback.

How often can that be counted on?