‘Winter is coming’ for Rodgers – in a good way
“We know winter is coming,” Aaron Rodgers says.
But not with the trepidation of Eddard Stark or Jon Snow. Rodgers has started to smile. Because unlike the “Game of Thrones” protagonists, the Packers’ quarterback views the arrival of winter as a glorious thing. The frigid temperatures and snowfalls combine to produce the comforts of home and make Lambeau Field one of the least desirable destinations for opponents.
Winter means go time for Rodgers and the Packers, who enter this final stretch of the NFL’s regular season with an 8-3 record and the top spot in the NFC North but who rank behind New Orleans and Seattle in the conference seeding.
Despite an uneven last couple of weeks, a losing record (1-2) against winning teams and a supporting cast short on star power, Rodgers likes the Packers’ chances down the stretch if the team can address a few key areas.
Much has been made about the Packers’ decision-making this offseason as the organization opted against using high draft picks or substantial free agency resources to upgrade Rodgers’ receiving corps. And disconcerting performances, like the blowout loss to the Buccaneers after a 4-0 start to the season and a second-half collapse in a narrow loss to the Colts in Week 10, give one pause when considering the Packers’ place among the league’s elite teams and their ability to contend for a Super Bowl title.
However, Rodgers, who is making a strong case for MVP honors, would argue that Green Bay has exhibited more signs of encouragement than concern. He sees a clear path toward improving the Packers’ standing in the NFC.
There’s no denying that Green Bay could have benefited from additional firepower this past offseason or at the trade deadline. Outside of three-time Pro Bowl selection Davante Adams, no
Green Bay wide receiver ranks among the top 40 players in receiving yards.
But rather than focus on what he doesn’t have, Rodgers accepts the challenge of elevating the young, stilldeveloping teammates by helping grow their knowledge and confidence while positioning them to exceed expectations.
Elevation is part of leadership, he believes, and leadership, in Rodgers’ opinion, involves relationship building.
“A coach of mine said this years ago to the team when he spoke. In essence, you can’t motivate people, but you can inspire them,” Rodgers told USA TODAY Sports last week, while appearing as part of FedEx’s holiday shipping campaign. “So I think every great leader can be inspirational. It’s the ability to push the right buttons on your teammates to get the most out of them. Because every teammate is different and responds to a different style of leadership.
“You have to trust, on the other end,
the motivation. Because motivation comes from within. It’s not something you can do for someone else. They have to want to do the work, they have to want to do the preparation, do the right amount of film, study their plan enough and write the notes that are going to help them remember enough. That’s the beauty of the game. You can’t micromanage everything. You can’t wave a magic wand and everybody is going to be the most dialed in. You’re working with a human element.”
Despite the shortage of proven skillposition talent, the Packers lead the NFL in scoring (31.7 points per game) while ranking fourth in total offense (392.9 yards per game) and third-down conversion rate (48.5%).
Rodgers is a big reason for that success, and he’s on pace to set new personal bests in multiple statistical categories.
He credits a better understanding of Matt LaFleur’s offense for the increase in production.
“I think a lot of it is just comfort within the offense,” Rodgers said. “I played in the same offense for 14 years, basically. I could close my eyes and go through the progressions, so last year was definitely a shock to have whole new terminology. The plays are the plays. Everybody runs similar plays in the NFL, but it’s just the terminology was a foreign language. It was like learning Russian, or whatever the hardest language – yeah, Mandarin, maybe. It was definitely a change for me.
“I felt good about the performance last year, but this year, not just myself, but a lot of the contributors – Davante, Allen (Lazard), Aaron Jones, Jamaal Williams, Marquez (Valdes-Scantling) and Marcedes (Lewis) – we feel a lot more comfortable with our spots in the offense and that’s why you’ve seen an uptick in the production I think.”
Coming off a blowout victory over the Bears, Green Bay remains in the driver’s seat in the division with one more meeting with the Lions (Week 14) and Chicago (Week 17) remaining.
However, Rodgers believes the Packers can improve their chances of making a Super Bowl run by securing homefield advantage throughout the playoffs. (The 9-2 Saints lead the NFC, while the Seahawks also are 8-3 but hold the tiebreaker with Green Bay based on strength of victory.)
“It’s going to be cold. Winter is coming in Green Bay. We’ve had snow,” Rodgers said. “We know those are going to be physical games and you’ll have to run the ball effectively and stop the run, and that’s what we’re going to have to do here in December.
“We have a chance to put ourselves in position to make some games have to come through Green Bay. Not many people like coming to Green Bay in the cold of winter. We’ve won our fair share of games in those conditions. We won last year in the playoffs at home.
“So we need to get these next (five) taken care of and make everybody come through Green Bay.”