Packers’ Aaron Rodgers wins Super Bowl MVP award (Part 6)
This is the conclusion of a 5-part series of articles discussing Green Bay Packers’ quarterback Aaron Rodgers winning the Super Bowl MVP award and who else could have won it.
So if Rodgers had not won the Super Bowl MVP award, who would have?
First of all, I must say that Rodgers deserved it. He has risen above all expectations that the public and NFL teams put on him. He has won the Super Bowl in his third year as a starter with a whole crew of fresh recruits on his line.
He outplayed Roethlisberger, even though most people expected Big Ben to win. Rodgers had a 111.5 quarterback rating while the two time Super Bowl winning quarterback had a poor 77.4 rating.
Even throughout the entire 2010-2011 regular season and postseason, Rodgers has played amazingly.
Although, he may not be in the same league as New England Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady, he is still near the top. Brady has a 111 2010 season quarterback rating, throwing 3,900 yards for 36 touchdowns and only four interceptions, while being sacked 25
times.
Rodgers has a 101.2 2010 season quarterback rating, throwing 3,922 yards for 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions, while being sacked 31 times.
However, there is a reason that Brady is The Associated Press’ NFL Offensive Player of the Year and NFL MVP. You just can’t compete with him. But Rodgers might be able to. The Pats and Packers played each other in Week 15 with the Pats winning, 31-27.
But the main factor in a rematch is that Rodgers would be playing. He was out for the Week 15 game because of a concussion but it was a very close game with seven lead changes.
So if Rodgers had not won the MVP award, who would have? The best bet would be either Jennings or Nelson. Why? Well, why not?
Take a look at Jennings first in the Super Bowl. He caught four passes for 64 yards, averaging 16 yards per catch, for two touchdowns. His longest was for 31 yards. His first touchdown came with 2:24 left in the first half when Rodgers threw a 21 yard pass
to Jennings for the touchdown.
His second came in the beginning of the fourth quarter, about three minutes and three seconds in, when Rodgers connected with Jennings for an eight yard touchdown pass.
But even before the Super Bowl, Jennings was playing great. The five year pro from Kalamazoo, Michigan, has had 76 receptions for 1,265 yards and 12 touchdowns this season. He averaged 16.6 yards per reception with his longest catch being for 86 yards.
His best game of the season came in Week 11 against the Vikings. Jennings caught seven passes for 152 yards, averaging 21.7 yards per catch, for three touchdowns. In the playoffs, he has made 21 receptions for 303 yards and two touchdowns.
Aside from Jennings, Nelson was also a good candidate for the MVP award. In the Super Bowl, Nelson broke the franchise record for most receiving yards in a Super Bowl after he caught nine passes for 140 yards. He averaged 15.6 yards per reception and his
longest was for 38 yards.
He also played exceptionally well during the regular season and other postseason games. The six foot three, 217 pound wide receiver has caught 45 receptions for 582 yards and two touchdowns.
Although this does not seem as much as Jennings’, it must be noted that Coach McCarthy did not wish to target Nelson because he is new to the Packers team.
However, he showed what he was made of in Week 16 in their win over the New York Giants.
Nelson caught four passes for 124 yards, averaging 31 yards per reception. He even caught an 80 yard touchdown pass, the longest of his three year career.
He caught two touchdown passes in the 16 game regular season and made just as many in the 2010 postseason. He caught 21 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns. Not bad at all for a 25 year old.
Even though Nelson and Jennings could have gotten the MVP award, they didn’t. So get over it. Rodgers played extremely well and deserved the honour that he got, if not more. All we can do is wait and wish the Green and Yellow best of luck for next season.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy
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