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Aaron Rodgers...class act, and already a leader!
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<blockquote data-quote="kelbel505" data-source="post: 26646" data-attributes="member: 368"><p>Found this link on Packernet.com</p><p></p><p><a href="http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/sports/12913105.htm" target="_blank">http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercuryn ... 913105.htm</a></p><p></p><p>And the article:</p><p></p><p>Time's not right to anoint Aaron Rodgers for anything just yet</p><p></p><p>By BOB MCGINN</p><p></p><p>Milwaukee Journal Sentinel</p><p></p><p></p><p>GREEN BAY, Wis. - Some of the most inane babble in the first five weeks of the season was the so-called "national media" speculation that the Green Bay Packers would be turning over the reins to Aaron Rodgers if their losing ways continued.</p><p></p><p>Aaron Rodgers? Anyone who watched even a minute of tape from Rodgers' four appearances in the exhibition season would know that the rookie quarterback from California is no more ready to start a regular-season game in the National Football League than Wisconsin quarterback John Stocco.</p><p></p><p>OK, pardon the exaggeration, but you get the idea.</p><p></p><p>When Rodgers was anointed No. 2 ahead of Craig Nall half an hour before kickoff in Detroit, neither general manager Ted Thompson nor coach Mike Sherman ever explained why that was, probably because they had no legitimate reason. And, if anything ever should happen to Brett Favre, you can bet your paycheck that Nall would start the next game. That is, if the Packers are interested in salvaging this season, Nall would start the next game.</p><p></p><p>That's not to say Nall is a great player. Far from it. But you maybe could envision a scenario in which teammates would rally around Nall, a tough guy with at least a working command of the offense.</p><p></p><p>Now, if Rodgers were to start, the Packers wouldn't have a chance. On Tuesday, the first day that the majority of practice was open to reporters in more than a month, Rodgers looked awful. If one day was any indication, he hasn't been improving a bit.</p><p></p><p>But the point is moot because Favre is indestructible. Nall, soon to become an unrestricted free agent, might not be re-signed even if he does happen to be a better player than Rodgers in 2005.</p><p></p><p>Unless you're Rich Campbell, no quarterback is drafted in the first round and not given a chance to make it as a starter.</p><p></p><p>Just as he probably made sure that Rodgers was No. 2, Thompson will make sure when the time is right that the first player he drafted in Green Bay gets a fair shot. What Rodgers will do with that opportunity is the mystery with few clues.</p><p></p><p>Almost every time Rodgers performs on a football field, the comments of an AFC personnel director made in early April are brought back to mind.</p><p></p><p>"He's been busting his (expletive) his whole life to get to this point," the executive said. "I just don't know how much more he has to give."</p><p></p><p>By now, everyone knows the story of how Rodgers elected to go junior college when no Division I-A schools offered him a scholarship, and how Cal coach Jeff Tedford inadvertently discovered him while looking at his tight end, and how Rodgers went 17-5 as a starter for the Golden Bears.</p><p></p><p>Because of his humble background, Rodgers plays with a chip on his shoulder in a positive manner.</p><p></p><p>Nevertheless, Rodgers has limitations physically that won't just go away. He is 6 feet 2 inches on the nose, isn't a great natural athlete and doesn't have more than an average arm.</p><p></p><p>"That's right," said Bill Walsh, the legendary former coach of the San Francisco 49ers who follows football in the Bay Area closely as special assistant to the athletic director at Stanford. "What you see is what you get. He doesn't have more great potential that doesn't show. He's part of a system and a real outstanding coach in college and all that. I don't know where it's going to take him."</p><p></p><p>Or, as one longtime quarterbacks coach in the NFL said: "He doesn't demonstrate as a first-rounder the genetic ability to do something extraordinary. The fear for Aaron Rodgers is he'll just plateau right at this kind of average level. You'd like to think that if you're spending a (first-round) pick you'd get someone special."</p><p></p><p>Last week, the quarterbacks coach and three personnel directors for NFL teams were asked this question: When it's all said and done, will Rodgers be a strong starter, a bust or somewhere in between?</p><p></p><p>One scout predicted Rodgers would develop into a strong starter, whereas three said he'd be in between, although one almost decided to cast his vote for strong starter.</p><p></p><p>"Physically, he's got the ability that you want," the waffling personnel man said. "The worry is that he's pre-fab, that Tedford did more for him than he did for himself. He's one of those what you see is what you get, and you're not sure if it's going to be good enough."</p><p></p><p>All four of the respondents based their comments on Rodgers after having studied him on exhibition tapes.</p><p></p><p>The executive that liked Rodgers the most was read the scout's comment from before the draft.</p><p></p><p>"That might be an accurate statement, but I don't think he has to give much more," he said. "The things he offers you are the things that you need. If he's used right, he'll be just like (Ben) Roethlisberger. I could read you the same quotes about (Tom) Brady.</p><p></p><p>"Two things I liked about him. He knows where to go with the football. That's No. 1. That was Heath Shuler's problem. No. 2, he gets it off on time. He doesn't have the greatest arm strength, but I don't worry about it.</p><p></p><p>"You can't ask Rodgers to win the game for you like you can Brett Favre. He has to have a great tight end, a big, strong possession receiver and the best running back I could get that could run between the tackles.</p><p></p><p>"I'd rather put the ball in this kid's hands than (J.P.) Losman. You can trust him with the game plan. He's a very confident player. It radiates to the other players. You could feel it when you were around him on the practice field at Cal."</p><p></p><p>This essentially is what Thompson was saying on the day of the draft.</p><p></p><p>Now, go back to how Rodgers has performed in Green Bay. To summarize, he quarterbacked 19 full series without scoring a point until throwing a touchdown pass on his 20th possession in Tennessee.</p><p></p><p>"Other than the drive against Tennessee I thought Rodgers was awful," an AFC personnel director said. "He's still kind of mechanical. He's not as accurate as you'd like. He's a project."</p><p></p><p>A personnel director for an NFC team basically saw Rodgers in the same light.</p><p></p><p>"He looked terrible this summer, there's no doubt about it," he said. "People were talking about benching Brett Favre before the Carolina game and I'm like, `That's just crazy talk.' My gosh. He looked so bad. If he can't pick it up and go against the speed of guys in practice, there's no way he could do it in games."</p><p></p><p>But neither scout was ready to predict Rodgers would be a bust.</p><p></p><p>"Watching him in pre-season, he looked confused and has a long way to go, but having said that it's a very confusing offense," the NFC man said. "Tim Couch looked terrible the year before. For young guys, it takes a couple years."</p><p></p><p>And Rodgers, with a score of 35 on the Wonderlic intelligence test, is a fast learner.</p><p></p><p>Just how inauspicious was Rodgers' performance in exhibition games?</p><p></p><p>From 1986-2005, a total of 43 quarterbacks were taken in the first round. Because of holdouts, injuries and availability of statistics, the first-year passer ratings of 29 players with 25 or more passing attempts were compared to Rodgers', who had 37 attempts.</p><p></p><p>Rodgers, with a rating of 53.0, ranked 24th among the group of 30. The only first-rounders behind him were Tommy Maddox (52.6), Cade McNown (50.4), Philip Rivers (46.4), Dan McGwire (43.5), Jason Campbell (43.1) and Kerry Collins (42.3). Neither Rivers nor Campbell has had a chance, Collins is a long-time starter and the other three were busts.</p><p></p><p>The good players in front of Rodgers were Drew Bledsoe (101.0), Troy Aikman (98.8), Carson Palmer (87.8), Peyton Manning (78.9), Roethlisberger (71.4) and Michael Vick (55.4). The bad players were Rick Mirer (84.9), Ryan Leaf (80.3), Couch (77.6), Akili Smith (64.5) and Jim Druckenmiller (54.4).</p><p></p><p>"Everyone is in a rush to make a judgment in this league," one scout said. "He's got time. Look at (John) Elway his rookie year. Guys have come out of it. But if he gets to the third year and you still feel the same way, yeah, then he probably is (a bust)."</p><p></p><p>At this point, in the words of another scout, "he just looks very, very common. You've not seen him do anything to make you think he's a big-time guy."</p><p></p><p>If Thompson ever would have second thoughts, he always could put on Rodgers' wonderful performance in a 23-17 loss to national champion Southern California last October. Bruce Coslet, a close friend of USC coach Pete Carroll's, was on hand at the Memorial Coliseum.</p><p></p><p>"Rodgers played lights-out," the retired Coslet, former head coach of the New York Jets and Cincinnati Bengals, said last week. "I was surprised that he played as well as he did."</p><p></p><p>But Coslet, a veteran of 22 seasons as an NFL coach, punctured a belief held by many fans by saying that just because a quarterback is taken with the 24th pick in the first round doesn't mean that quarterback can play.</p><p></p><p>"You never know how they make the transition to the next step," Coslet said. "I mean, there are no can't-miss guys. None of them. Zero.</p><p></p><p>"You've got to be a stud. You've got to be a man. It's a whole different ball game, playing quarterback for an NFL team, than it is in college. That's for damn sure.</p><p></p><p>"You hope you find one because that's the key to the whole league. There's only about 20 guys in the whole world that can do what they do. And the other 12 teams don't have a chance."</p><p></p><p>This is the 14th season in a row that the Packers have had the great fortune of having a great quarterback. So far, Rodgers' chances to become even a reliable starter should have stirred more uncertainty than hope.</p><p></p><p></p><p>---Always interesting that these comments after the fact. Everyone had rodgers as the the number one pick. I think he will do fine, just have to get the guy the personell to help him out early in his career. All I care about is getting W's and if he can do that he's good enough for me.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="kelbel505, post: 26646, member: 368"] Found this link on Packernet.com [url="http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/sports/12913105.htm"]http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercuryn ... 913105.htm[/url] And the article: Time's not right to anoint Aaron Rodgers for anything just yet By BOB MCGINN Milwaukee Journal Sentinel GREEN BAY, Wis. - Some of the most inane babble in the first five weeks of the season was the so-called "national media" speculation that the Green Bay Packers would be turning over the reins to Aaron Rodgers if their losing ways continued. Aaron Rodgers? Anyone who watched even a minute of tape from Rodgers' four appearances in the exhibition season would know that the rookie quarterback from California is no more ready to start a regular-season game in the National Football League than Wisconsin quarterback John Stocco. OK, pardon the exaggeration, but you get the idea. When Rodgers was anointed No. 2 ahead of Craig Nall half an hour before kickoff in Detroit, neither general manager Ted Thompson nor coach Mike Sherman ever explained why that was, probably because they had no legitimate reason. And, if anything ever should happen to Brett Favre, you can bet your paycheck that Nall would start the next game. That is, if the Packers are interested in salvaging this season, Nall would start the next game. That's not to say Nall is a great player. Far from it. But you maybe could envision a scenario in which teammates would rally around Nall, a tough guy with at least a working command of the offense. Now, if Rodgers were to start, the Packers wouldn't have a chance. On Tuesday, the first day that the majority of practice was open to reporters in more than a month, Rodgers looked awful. If one day was any indication, he hasn't been improving a bit. But the point is moot because Favre is indestructible. Nall, soon to become an unrestricted free agent, might not be re-signed even if he does happen to be a better player than Rodgers in 2005. Unless you're Rich Campbell, no quarterback is drafted in the first round and not given a chance to make it as a starter. Just as he probably made sure that Rodgers was No. 2, Thompson will make sure when the time is right that the first player he drafted in Green Bay gets a fair shot. What Rodgers will do with that opportunity is the mystery with few clues. Almost every time Rodgers performs on a football field, the comments of an AFC personnel director made in early April are brought back to mind. "He's been busting his (expletive) his whole life to get to this point," the executive said. "I just don't know how much more he has to give." By now, everyone knows the story of how Rodgers elected to go junior college when no Division I-A schools offered him a scholarship, and how Cal coach Jeff Tedford inadvertently discovered him while looking at his tight end, and how Rodgers went 17-5 as a starter for the Golden Bears. Because of his humble background, Rodgers plays with a chip on his shoulder in a positive manner. Nevertheless, Rodgers has limitations physically that won't just go away. He is 6 feet 2 inches on the nose, isn't a great natural athlete and doesn't have more than an average arm. "That's right," said Bill Walsh, the legendary former coach of the San Francisco 49ers who follows football in the Bay Area closely as special assistant to the athletic director at Stanford. "What you see is what you get. He doesn't have more great potential that doesn't show. He's part of a system and a real outstanding coach in college and all that. I don't know where it's going to take him." Or, as one longtime quarterbacks coach in the NFL said: "He doesn't demonstrate as a first-rounder the genetic ability to do something extraordinary. The fear for Aaron Rodgers is he'll just plateau right at this kind of average level. You'd like to think that if you're spending a (first-round) pick you'd get someone special." Last week, the quarterbacks coach and three personnel directors for NFL teams were asked this question: When it's all said and done, will Rodgers be a strong starter, a bust or somewhere in between? One scout predicted Rodgers would develop into a strong starter, whereas three said he'd be in between, although one almost decided to cast his vote for strong starter. "Physically, he's got the ability that you want," the waffling personnel man said. "The worry is that he's pre-fab, that Tedford did more for him than he did for himself. He's one of those what you see is what you get, and you're not sure if it's going to be good enough." All four of the respondents based their comments on Rodgers after having studied him on exhibition tapes. The executive that liked Rodgers the most was read the scout's comment from before the draft. "That might be an accurate statement, but I don't think he has to give much more," he said. "The things he offers you are the things that you need. If he's used right, he'll be just like (Ben) Roethlisberger. I could read you the same quotes about (Tom) Brady. "Two things I liked about him. He knows where to go with the football. That's No. 1. That was Heath Shuler's problem. No. 2, he gets it off on time. He doesn't have the greatest arm strength, but I don't worry about it. "You can't ask Rodgers to win the game for you like you can Brett Favre. He has to have a great tight end, a big, strong possession receiver and the best running back I could get that could run between the tackles. "I'd rather put the ball in this kid's hands than (J.P.) Losman. You can trust him with the game plan. He's a very confident player. It radiates to the other players. You could feel it when you were around him on the practice field at Cal." This essentially is what Thompson was saying on the day of the draft. Now, go back to how Rodgers has performed in Green Bay. To summarize, he quarterbacked 19 full series without scoring a point until throwing a touchdown pass on his 20th possession in Tennessee. "Other than the drive against Tennessee I thought Rodgers was awful," an AFC personnel director said. "He's still kind of mechanical. He's not as accurate as you'd like. He's a project." A personnel director for an NFC team basically saw Rodgers in the same light. "He looked terrible this summer, there's no doubt about it," he said. "People were talking about benching Brett Favre before the Carolina game and I'm like, `That's just crazy talk.' My gosh. He looked so bad. If he can't pick it up and go against the speed of guys in practice, there's no way he could do it in games." But neither scout was ready to predict Rodgers would be a bust. "Watching him in pre-season, he looked confused and has a long way to go, but having said that it's a very confusing offense," the NFC man said. "Tim Couch looked terrible the year before. For young guys, it takes a couple years." And Rodgers, with a score of 35 on the Wonderlic intelligence test, is a fast learner. Just how inauspicious was Rodgers' performance in exhibition games? From 1986-2005, a total of 43 quarterbacks were taken in the first round. Because of holdouts, injuries and availability of statistics, the first-year passer ratings of 29 players with 25 or more passing attempts were compared to Rodgers', who had 37 attempts. Rodgers, with a rating of 53.0, ranked 24th among the group of 30. The only first-rounders behind him were Tommy Maddox (52.6), Cade McNown (50.4), Philip Rivers (46.4), Dan McGwire (43.5), Jason Campbell (43.1) and Kerry Collins (42.3). Neither Rivers nor Campbell has had a chance, Collins is a long-time starter and the other three were busts. The good players in front of Rodgers were Drew Bledsoe (101.0), Troy Aikman (98.8), Carson Palmer (87.8), Peyton Manning (78.9), Roethlisberger (71.4) and Michael Vick (55.4). The bad players were Rick Mirer (84.9), Ryan Leaf (80.3), Couch (77.6), Akili Smith (64.5) and Jim Druckenmiller (54.4). "Everyone is in a rush to make a judgment in this league," one scout said. "He's got time. Look at (John) Elway his rookie year. Guys have come out of it. But if he gets to the third year and you still feel the same way, yeah, then he probably is (a bust)." At this point, in the words of another scout, "he just looks very, very common. You've not seen him do anything to make you think he's a big-time guy." If Thompson ever would have second thoughts, he always could put on Rodgers' wonderful performance in a 23-17 loss to national champion Southern California last October. Bruce Coslet, a close friend of USC coach Pete Carroll's, was on hand at the Memorial Coliseum. "Rodgers played lights-out," the retired Coslet, former head coach of the New York Jets and Cincinnati Bengals, said last week. "I was surprised that he played as well as he did." But Coslet, a veteran of 22 seasons as an NFL coach, punctured a belief held by many fans by saying that just because a quarterback is taken with the 24th pick in the first round doesn't mean that quarterback can play. "You never know how they make the transition to the next step," Coslet said. "I mean, there are no can't-miss guys. None of them. Zero. "You've got to be a stud. You've got to be a man. It's a whole different ball game, playing quarterback for an NFL team, than it is in college. That's for damn sure. "You hope you find one because that's the key to the whole league. There's only about 20 guys in the whole world that can do what they do. And the other 12 teams don't have a chance." This is the 14th season in a row that the Packers have had the great fortune of having a great quarterback. So far, Rodgers' chances to become even a reliable starter should have stirred more uncertainty than hope. ---Always interesting that these comments after the fact. Everyone had rodgers as the the number one pick. I think he will do fine, just have to get the guy the personell to help him out early in his career. All I care about is getting W's and if he can do that he's good enough for me. [/QUOTE]
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