The woke mob has no power here.
Yes, Aaron Rodgers lied about being vaccinated, in order to avoid being criticized for not being vaccinated. Sure, he held the franchise and its fan base hostage with an offseason mystery regarding whether he’d retire, an effort that may have been as much about getting attention as sending a message to the Packers. Yep, he can be a bit of a jerk and even a low-key bully, using a weekly radio platform with Pat McAfee and A.J. Hawk to air grievances and settle scores -- and also to unwittingly show the world a little too much of his ass.
Regardless, he’s the best player in the NFL. Better than Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes or any other quarterback or non-quarterback.
Brady came in second in our unofficial internal discussions; at age 44, he continues to do uncanny things. But the ultimate distinction appears on the playoff tree, where Rodgers took his team to the No. 1 seed, and Brady didn’t.
In a wide-open NFL season, avoiding the wild-card round and ensuring that only a pair of home wins results in a Super Bowl berth has tremendous value. Rodgers has tremendous value. He has incredible throwing skills, flick-of-the-wrist power, velocity, and accuracy that becomes even more impressive as he approaches 40.
In addition to Brady, we also considered Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, who may soon be the perennial MVP for a Cincinnati franchise squarely on the rise. Still, the winner is Rodgers. Brady deserves it. Rodgers deserves it more. Setting aside all things unrelated to football (which hopefully most Associated Press voters did), it’s a no-brainer.