Brady wins showdown with Rodgers
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers spent the week telling anyone who asked that the other guy was the better quarterback.
In the second matchup between the future Hall of Famers, it was the one with five Super Bowl rings who walked off the field with the victory.
Brady threw for 294 yards and a touchdown, and James White ran for two scores to lead the New England Patriots to a 31-17 victory over Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers on Sunday night.
It was 17-all late in the third quarter when Aaron Jones fumbled for Green Bay (3-4-1). Then it was all New England (7-2), which won its sixth straight.
“We made some plays in the fourth quarter when we needed to,” Brady said. “Anytime you beat a good football team it feels good. So, 7-2 is a long ways from 1-2 where we were.”
Rodgers completed 24 of 43 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns but failed to rally his team after tying the game in the third quarter. Rodgers won the first matchup with Brady at Lambeau Field in 2014.
“If you play long enough, and you have the sustained greatness that Tom has had, there’s going to be a lot of records,” Rodgers said. “He’s been the gold standard at quarterback for two decades.”
After Jones fumbled, New England receiver Julian Edelman hit White on a 37-yard catch-and-run to set up White’s second score, a 1-yard run. On the Patriots next possession, Brady connected with Josh Gordon for a 55-yard TD.
Gordon caught five passes for 130 yards, the 12th 100-yard receiving game of his career.
With tight end Rob Gronkowski out with a back and ankle injury and leading rusher Sony Michel out for the second straight week with a knee issue, Brady and the Patriots had to get creative.
They again turned to receiver Cordarrelle Patterson to help carry the load in the backfield.
Patterson was effective for the second straight week, rushing 11 times for 61 yards and a touchdown.
“So much of our team is guys being in roles that maybe they didn’t sign up for,” Brady said. “But they’re asked to do it . ... A lot of guys down and you’re short at certain spots. Obviously, we have a lot of trust in him that when he’s got the ball in his hands good things are gonna happen.”
He worked in tandem with White to keep the Packers defense guessing.
Rodgers was on target in the first half. He was elusive in the pocket and extended plays with his feet, keeping the Patriots’ secondary off balance long enough to create space downfield or some big gains.
The longest was a 51-yard pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling in the third quarter that helped set up Rodgers’ 15-yard TD pass to Jimmy Graham that tied the score at 17.