Aaron Rodgers had a coming out party in 2008. What's in store for 2009?

It’s the summer of 2008 and your a Packers fan. Your sitting at home with your cheesehead on and your glass incased Favre jersey hanging above your TV as you are watching your worst nightmare unfold, Brett Favre is retiring. Tears roll down your face as Ted Thompson introduces Favre, and when Brett starts whimpering you start balling out of control. It is a sad day in Green Bay.

But don’t worry, it’s about to get a lot worse. Over the course of the next months the coaching staff will say that they are ready for life without Favre and that Aaron Rodgers is looking good. Then, in a stroke of luck, the chosen one returns after just a month with the wife and kids makes him re-think this “retirement” thing. You know it’s too good to be true but he’s back! Well it was too good to be true. In Favre’s absence the team had moved on, they drafted two backup quarterbacks and offensive players that are well suited for their new west coast offense, led by new starter Aaron Rodgers. Upon hearing that he is going to be a fucking backup Favre, inspired by his hatred of Ted Thompson and “a desire to compete”, demands a trade. In a very short period of time you have gone from the proud fan of a 13-3 team who made it to the NFC title game, to a deep depression after the up and down Favre saga that eventually lands the future HOF in New York in return for a third round pick in the draft. The town of Green Bay is put on suicide watch.

I’m gonna tell you right now that Brett Favre is easily amongst my five least favorite people in the world, so I do have what you would call a slight bias in this matter, and no I’m not an enraged Packers fan (I’m an enraged Cowboys fan, but that’s another matter). Regardless of who you are, after the last 3-4 seasons of indecision and offseason turmoil I think it’s safe to say that not many people, outside of the folks over at ESPN, really like Favre anymore. But for the Green Bay faithful it would be a hard year, it’s never easy to forget a legend. At least that’s what we thought.

I would be lying if I said I thought Aaron Rodgers would be this good. I knew he had skills, and with three years on the bench to develop them Rodgers was easily the most prepared first time starter, but 4,000 yards and 28 touchdowns through the air along with 200 yards and 4 touchdowns on the ground? That was beyond any of my wildest dreams. I was cheering for Rodgers once I learned that Favre was being shown the door. I was hoping for maybe 2,500 yards and 18 touchdowns, but 4,000 and 28… damn this kid is good. Unfortunately the team didn’t do quite as well, going just 6-10 after a magical 13-3 season, and in football team success is often the biggest factor when judging the success of a starting quarterback. However, looking closer at the Packer’s ‘08 season you will notice that 7 of their 10 loses were by less than a touchdown, with 2 of those coming in overtime! One catch here and one tackle there and the Packers are 9-7 or 10-6. Regardless, the 2008 season was a coming out party for Aaron Rodgers, he was 6th in passer rating, 4th in passing yards, 4th in touchdown passes, and amazingly lead all quarterbacks in rushing touchdowns (tied with teammate Ryan Grant with 4). Brett Favre on the other hand was brutal with a passer rating of just 81.0, throwing 22 touchdown passes but also 22 interceptions (most in the league).

This year Aaron Rodgers enters the season as the unquestioned starting quarterback of the Packers, and maybe more importantly won’t have to deal with the constant distraction of reporters asking questions about Favre’s return or who he thinks should be the starter, him or Favre. This year during training camp and the preseason Aaron Rodgers can just focus on football and will look to help his Packers get ready for an important second year in the post Favre era. Back in June I predicted that the Packers would go 8-8 and fall just shy of the playoffs, however, with the Brett Favre circus going on in Minnesota and no news of any attempts to get Jay Cutler a real wide reciever to throw the ball to in Chicago, things are looking good for Packer fans. I will refrain from making any predictions before the end of the preseason, but I will say that the Packers are making a case as my dark horse to win the NFC North.

The Packers have a tough schedule this season, with non divisional games against the Cowboys, Ravens, Steelers, and Cardinals but after a solid draft and a shift to the 3-4 defense the Packers are starting to looking like a contender. If Aaron Rodgers can lead the Packers past, new NFC North superstar, Jay Cutler and the Bears and, public enemy #1 in Green Bay, Brett Favre and the Vikings for the NFC North crown he would be a hero. It would officially usher in a new era in Green Bay, the Aaron Rodgers era. But if the Packers struggle through another sub-.500 season and Brett Favre wins the NFC North as a, gasp, Viking, things could start heating up in Green Bay. Not the weather silly, the hot seats that Aaron Rodgers, Ted Thompson, and Mike McCarthy will be occupying.

Personally, I think that in 2009 we will see the birth of a superstar in Aaron Rodgers. But that’s just me. Let us know what you think in the comments. Will Aaron Rodgers make Packer fans forget about Brett Favre or will he forever be remebered as “that guy who came after Favre”?

- KC Roberts