Aaron Rodgers will be the focus of all eyes tonight.
Many people secretly hope that what we saw in the Packers' opener, two interceptions, in a horrible loss to the New Orleans Saints, was the beginning for the reigning NFL MVP.
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There are many Rodgers Detractors, even former NFL players, who don't like the talented passer of the football. They hope that he will give another terrible performance against the lowly Detroit Lions in Green Bay on Monday Night Football.
All the best to them.
They are the same people who two years ago opined Rodgers skills were declining, that Rodgers wasnt so great anymore, and that Rodgers was just living off rep and not current abilities.
Talk about a prisoner in the moment. A total overreaction to a bad day at work.
Rodgers was a disaster last week. The entire team was terrible. The Packers team, which was one win away of the Super Bowl last year, never got off the plane in Jacksonville. Instead, they were torched by Saints.
It is unlikely that the same performance will be repeated.
It's not the Lions that are at risk, but they should be. Rodgers has almost owned them throughout his entire career.
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Rodgers is a beast on MNF. He has won seven consecutive games since 2014 before a national audience.
Statistically, he has the second most TD passes Monday night and the third-most wins for a QB with 10.
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Detroit is the NFL's general hospital. When they face the Lions, teams get well. Their defense allowed 41 points to San Francisco 49ers in Week 1.
Rodgers scored six touchdowns in 2020 against the Lions: five passing and one running.
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The Packers are now 6-0 under Matt LaFleur after two losses.
Rodgers stated that they were a great team to the Green Bay media. The last few years have been good for us. Good teams rarely have two poor performances.
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This will be Lambeau Field's first game with 80,000 spectators since 2019. To put it mildly, the crowd will be enthusiastic.
The Packers finished the previous two seasons at 13-3. Both times, they lost in the NFC Championship Game. There has been some criticism despite the success.
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Jermichael Finnley, a former Packers receiver, is one of Rodgers' loudest critics. Finley will tell anyone who will hear that the Packers should switch to Jordan Love, their second-year backup, by Week 4.
Finley is known to have a bad relationship with Rodgers. He has been criticizing Rodgers since his departure from Green Bay in 2013. Finley was quick to react to Rodgers' defeat against the Saints. Finley said ProFootballTalk that Rodgers looked tired and that he had lost his desire to play.
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Finley provided the ultimate hot take if that wasn't enough:
He said, "If you don't see it, let us go to Love." Aaron Rodgers has one of the most highly-paid backup quarterbacks so it makes sense to use him and get him moving for the future.
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But there is one problem. The Packers could have fulfilled Rodgers' trade request if they truly believed Love was available and a future star.
The Packers aren't crazy, however. Rodgers gives the Packers the best chance to win another Super Bowl. It's as simple as that.
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Rodgers' loud and public offseason is undoubtedly the source of much of the negative criticism. Rodgers raised a sneer about the organization's management and made his dissatisfaction clear.
Rodgers won the offseason. The Packers were defensive and had to accept it.
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Rodgers, 37 years old, had undoubtedly his best season to date. It was amazing to see him win his third MVP.
Rodgers also lost something. He did not attend offseason training with the team. He did not play in the preseason. It all came to a head in the first game against New Orleans, which was a 38-3 defeat.
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Rodgers has been a great player throughout his career. However, he seems to have at least one bad game per season. He had two picks last year in Tampa Bay's bad loss.
Tonight, Rodgers will be Rodgers. It is a prediction based on his track record. For the moment, expect his critics to crawl back under a rock.
