Aaron Rodgers Haters, Are You Full From That Crow You Ate?

Many people were saying Aaron Rodgers should not have been the starting quarterback of the Green Bay Packers this year.

Some even said he would not be able to handle it. Some were calling for General Manager of the Year Ted Thompson's job based on this one decision.

I was in the former group, but not the latter. I did think it called into question Thompson's job, but no more than failing to make a splash with the first pick in the draft the last two years, and less than failing to sign anyone of consequence in free agency despite having room for four of five impact players.

But I knew why management was growing tired of Brett Favre's indecision on retirement. I knew why they were tired of Favre thinking it was fine to make demands on who the team hired to coach as well as who they went after in free agency, even though by and large the decisions they made were better than those he wanted them to (Marco Rivera being let go, Mike McCarthy being hired...).

I also could see how they were tired of him scrapping the game plan because no one was going to bench him for it. That killed us in the Dallas game, and the best thing that could have happened to us was him getting hurt, allowing Rodgers a chance to play.

Rodgers shined in relief in that game, and I knew why they felt like they had to give Rodgers a chance or risk losing him forever. In last night's game, Rodgers validated their faith in him.

He threw for only about ten yards per completion because he stayed in the game plan. That allowed him to avoid being sacked once, avoid the turnover, avoid any negative plays.

He had only four incompletions, and two of those were throwing the ball away. Something Brett Favre rarely did, but instead would force a pass that was as almost as likely to be intercepted as completed.

He did miss one man for open in the end zone, but according to Ron Jaworski, that play had been blown dead. He also used his feet not just to buy time in the pocket, something Favre was brilliant at, but also to get yardage and a touchdown, something Favre could not do at the end of his career.

Furthermore, he managed to carry two things from his apprenticeship with one of the three best quarterbacks of all time: he used a hard count to draw the Vikings offsides, and he looked off defenders all night. It may be one game, but there was plenty of reason to think the Packers made the right decision.

There is enough reason to think the Packers will be better off soon, even by next year when Favre turns 40 and Rodgers has a year under his belt as a starter. There is even enough reason to think Rodgers may be able to lead this team as well as Brett would have this season.

So how does crow taste, oh ye of little faith?