Aaron Rodgers Is Shining in the NFL's Year of the Quarterback

The 2014 NFL season has certainly been the year of the quarterback. After 10 weeks of the season so far, there are seven starting quarterbacks who still have a passer rating over 100.

100 is considered exceptional. Why? Well, in the history of the NFL, only one quarterback has a career passer rating over 100. That would be Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers, who has a career mark of 106.2.

Rodgers leads the way in 2014 as well. No. 12 has the top passer rating in the league right now with a mark of 120.1 this season. That mark puts him close to the all-time NFL record he set for a single-season when he had a 122.5 rating in 2011.

For the season thus far, Rodgers has thrown 25 touchdown passes versus just three interceptions for 2,407 yards and his 120.1 rating.

Let's look at the other quarterbacks with a passer rating over 100:

• Peyton Manning: 29 touchdown passes vs. seven interceptions for 2,912 yards. (112.1 rating)
• Ben Roethlisberger: 23 touchdown passes vs. five interceptions for 3,063 yards. (107.3 rating)
• Tony Romo: 18 touchdown passes vs. six interceptions for 2,244 yards. (107.2 rating)
• Tom Brady: 22 touchdown passes vs. three interceptions for 2,392 yards. (103.5 rating)
• Philip Rivers: 20 touchdown passes vs. eight interceptions for 2,351 yards. (102.6 rating)
• Andrew Luck: 26 touchdown passes vs. nine interceptions for 3,085 yards. (100.3 rating)

In addition to that list of excellence, there are also 10 quarterbacks in the NFL who all have passer ratings of over 90. 90 is considered better-than-average.

So why is this happening this year? For one thing, it's the passing rules in the NFL. For instance, defenders are not allowed to touch a receiver after five yards past the line of scrimmage. That rule has been enforced rather liberally this season.

Quarterbacks are protected via the rules as well, and have been for the past few years.

Still, the play of the quarterbacks this year has been outstanding overall.

The 2014 NFL MVP will most likely come from the list of quarterbacks above, although running back DeMarco Murray of the Dallas Cowboys might have something to say about that.

But if I had to take a guess, I would say that the MVP this year will be a quarterback. Manning has already won the award five times, while Brady has won it twice and Rodgers won it in 2011.

Rodgers looks like he will come close to doing what he did in 2011 this year. No. 12 is on pace for 44 touchdown passes versus just five picks for 4,279 yards.

In 2011, Rodgers threw 45 touchdown passes versus six interceptions for 4,643. So, except for the yardage, this year looks to be almost a mirror image of what Rodgers did in his MVP year of 2011.

In fact, Rodgers is starting to accumulate the passing yards currently as well, as he has averaged 366.5 yards passing the past two games against New Orleans and Chicago.

Rodgers leads the NFL this season with 11 passes completed of over 40 yards. He also is the leader among all qualified candidates with an average of 8.7 yards a completion.

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

In the recent Sunday night game against the Bears, Rodgers was almost perfect, as he tied an NFL record by throwing six touchdown passes in the first half alone. Only Daryle Lamonica of the Oakland Raiders had done that before in 1969.

Coincidentally, like Rodgers, Lamonica was drafted by the Packers. The "Mad Bomber" was drafted in 1963 by Green Bay, but opted to play for the Buffalo Bills of the AFL instead.

Besides tying that mark, Rodgers also broke a NFL record on Sunday night, when he threw his 16th career touchdown pass of 70 or more yards to Jordy Nelson, breaking the mark he shared with Brett Favre and Manning.

Bottom line, Rodgers is definitely the leader of the "Pack" in more ways than one in NFL annals.