Criticism and questions are coming in from every angle, but Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers aren’t feeling the doomsday vibes from the outside world.
“We have the confidence that we can get this thing going in the right direction,” Rodgers said, via Jason Wilde of ESPN. “This is not an end-of-the-world-type moment, like everything’s coming down on top of us.”
The Packers once again struggled on offense in Week 2, as Rodgers had two critical turnovers and Green Bay mustered only 14 points in a 3-point loss to the Minnesota Vikings.
Outsiders can’t figure it out. How could a two-time MVP quarterback, who has established the gold standard for passing rating and efficiency, suddenly play at a level so far below his previous greatness for so long?
Rodgers, the NFL’s all-time leader in passer rating, hasn’t produced a passer rating over 100.0 since a win over the San Diego Chargers last October. He currently ranks 22nd among qualified quarterbacks in passer rating at 82.6, largely because he’s been so poor in yards per attempt (5.9, 31st in NFL) and completion percentage (57.1, 30th) to start 2016.
Rodgers isn’t panicking, but he knows he needs to play better.
“I didn’t play as well as I wanted to last week, and I turned the ball over twice, and I can’t do that if we’re going to win the game,” Rodgers said, via Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press Gazette. “So I’ve got to play better, and I’ve got to play more efficiently on offense.”
The Packers host the Detroit Lions for their home opener in Week 3.
The 2016 season is only two weeks old, and the Packers are still attempting to work Jordy Nelson and Jared Cook into the offense. There was going to be some hiccups along the way, even if many expected Rodgers’ struggles with efficiency to start fading away.
Rodgers might not be back to MVP form, but the end of the world hasn’t hit the locker room at Lambeau Field. Yet.
