Aaron Rodgers: The Most Complete Quarterback the NFL Has Ever Seen

Aaron Rodgers is playing the quarterback position at an unprecedented level.

Against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Rodgers was 23-of-34 for 299 yards, with three touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed five times for 28 yards, and had a QB rating of 112.3.

Yet statistically speaking, it was his second-worst game of the season.

Let’s take a look at the numbers. Through the first 10 games of the ’11-’12 season, Rodgers has thrown for 3,168 yards and 31 touchdowns, completed 72.3 percent of his passes, and has only four interceptions (two of which were tipped by his own receiver). He is averaging 9.6 yards/attempt and his overall passer rating is an astounding 128.8.

As if that was not good enough, Rodgers has 176 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.

According to ESPN, “The Total QBR is a quarterback rating that takes into account all of a quarterback's contributions (passing, rushing, sacks, fumbles, penalties) to his team's scoring and winning and summarizes them into one number on a 0-100 scale, on which 50 is average.”

They state that a QBR of 65 is equivalent to a Pro Bowl season. A QBR of 75 is a season that an MVP would have. Through 10 games, Rodgers’ QBR is an 87.2.

The Packers have done an excellent job surrounding Rodgers with a fantastic supporting cast. He has one of the NFL’s best deep threats in Greg Jennings. He’s got the always sure-handed Donald Driver. The emergence of Jordy Nelson has been a great addition.

James Jones can also be a dangerous wide-receiver wherever he lines up on the field. In addition, TE Jermichael Finley (at 6’5” 250lbs) is a matchup nightmare for any opposing team. Ryan Grant and James Starks are two decent running-backs that complement the best passing attack in the league.

All of this adds up to a high-octane Packer offense led by a guy who is playing as efficiently as a QB has ever played the game of football. Rodgers has had at least a 110.0 passer rating in each of his first 10 games, breaking Peyton Manning’s record of nine games in 2004. He has a 72.3 completion percentage, which is ahead of the record (70.6 percent) set by Drew Brees in 2010.

Rodgers has already thrown 31 touchdown passes, leaving him 19 short of the iconic mark of 50. With six games left on the schedule, and considering the high level that Rodgers has been playing at all year, 50 TDs is not at all out of his reach.

Rodgers is blessed with the precision of Peyton Manning, the arm strength of Brett Favre and the legs of Steve Young. He is the most complete quarterback the NFL has seen, and he shows no signs of slowing down.

He has had critics throughout his entire life, from those who thought he was not good enough to play Division I football, to the teams that passed up on him in the 2004 NFL draft.

We haven’t heard from those critics in a while.

Remarkably, Rodgers has attempted a total of 329 passes this season with only four interceptions.

When asked in a press conference why he does not throw more picks, Rodgers simply replied, “I just don’t like throwing the ball to the other team.”

Don’t you wish everything was that easy?