The Green Bay Packers have been dealing with major injuries across the board this season, including with quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Although he tried to keep playing through the pain, the future Hall of Fame QB was hit with yet another injury on Sunday Night Football.
During the second half of Sunday night’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Rodgers was hit hard while being sacked. The broadcast showed the veteran quarterback wincing with pain on the next series, before jogging into the locker room to be looked at. The Packers announced shortly after that Rodgers was questionable to return with an oblique injury.
The injury wasn’t the first one that Rodgers was dealing with. The 38-year-old had also been playing the majority of the year with a broken thumb that had been impacting his ability to consistently throw accurately.
With the injuries piling up for Rodgers and Green Bay’s playoff hopes slipping away, it could be time for Jordan Love to take over for the rest of the season.
A Year to Forget for Aaron Rodgers
If this ends up being his final NFL season, it will go down as the most disappointing one of Aaron Rodgers’ career.
After exiting Sunday’s game with a pair of turnovers, Rodgers has now thrown nine interceptions in 12 games. That is already the most interceptions that the back-to-back MVP has thrown since 2010, showing just how off this season has been for him.
Losing Davante Adams was a tall enough task for Rodgers to overcome, but the Packers have dealt with more than just losing their top receiver. The offensive line has been shuffled around throughout the year with both David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins recovering from torn ACLs they had suffered in previous seasons. Meanwhile, second-year guard Royce Newman was benched after a poor stretch of play.
The Packers have also dealt with injuries at wide receiver, including long-term absences from Sammy Watkins, Randall Cobb, and promising rookie Romeo Doubs. Fellow rookie Christian Watson missed some time as well, but showed flashes when healthy after catching five touchdowns over a two-week span against the Cowboys and Titans.
It’s been a worst-case scenario for Rodgers and the Packers, but that sour tase in his mouth could convince the Green Bay quarterback to come back for a shot at redemption in 2023.
Is Jordan Love the Future at QB?
If Rodgers isn’t able to finish the season, Jordan Love will finally get a chance as the starter. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s the QB of the future in Green Bay.
The former first-round pick is on the third year of his rookie deal, and as a first-round pick, the team will have the option to pick up his fifth year in 2023, which would keep him under contract through the 2025 season. If the Packers aren’t confident that he’s the long-term answer, then fans will get an idea of that when they announce whether or not they picked up Love’s fifth-year option.
Love has only seen one start in his NFL career against the Kansas City Chiefs, replacing Rodgers when he was out with COVID. He posted a 69.5 passer rating in the loss, however, failing to ease the concerns of Packers fans wanting to see if he could run the offense.
If Rodgers is out for a significant amount of time, the next few weeks will be crucial for Love to prove himself as the quarterback of the future in Green Bay.
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Aaron Rodgers Exits Game with Another Injury vs Eagles