We judge our athletes on one thing and one thing only — championships.
While I’m not saying this approach is always correct — some great players never find themselves in the right environment in order to win — it’s the cold hard truth when it comes to the judgment of a player’s career.
Take NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley, for instance. Barkley was named to the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team in October, making him one of the top-75 players of all-time. He’s widely regarded as one of the best forwards ever and one of the premier rebounders in the games’ history. And yet, he played during the era of Michael Jordan, never able to get over the hump and lead his team to a championship. Because of this, Sir Charles has to deal with constant taunts from Shaquille O’Neal, a player who did less with more than any other player in the modern era.
Rings matter. Championships matter. And Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers knows it.
Rodgers will never face the same fate as Barkley — Rodgers has one Super Bowl win to his name — but if he ends his career with just the one Super Bowl appearance, he’ll leave himself open to the criticism that so many greats have to endure when their playing days come to an end.
Rodgers will lead his Packers against the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC’s Divisional Playoffs on Saturday, and his legacy is on the line. While Rodgers will more than likely win back-to-back MVPs, the award won’t carry nearly the same weight if his Packers once again bow out before the Super Bowl.
“It’s all a part of it,” Rodgers said Tuesday. “I think success is often based, for quarterbacks, on championships won. I think success, individually, is much more than that, and failure, on the flip side of that, should not, in my opinion, be based solely on your losses and your failures, your mistakes, your low points. It’s so much more than that. It’s mindset. It’s an approach. It’s the total package.”
“But I understand that in our business, so much of it is focused on the wins and losses, especially in the playoffs, Super Bowl rings and all that stuff.”
For the past three years, Rodgers has led the Packers to 13-win seasons, posting numbers that put him among the all-time greats. But it hasn’t translated to Super Bowl rings. Heck, it hasn’t even translated to an appearance in the final game of the season.
In 2019, Rodgers threw for 4,002 yards, with 26 touchdowns to just four interceptions. He led Green Bay to the NFC Championship Game against the San Francisco 49ers, falling to Jimmy Garoppolo 37-20.
In the 2020 season — the second season under head coach Matt LaFleur — Rodgers and the Packers offense took off, ninth in the NFL in passing yards per game. Rodgers won his third MVP award, throwing 48 touchdowns and just 5 interceptions. A date with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Championship Game was the reward, with Rodgers once again falling short of the Super Bowl in an excruciating 31-26 loss.
What lies ahead for Rodgers in a Packers uniform is the great unknown, and as the years continue to fly by, Rodgers is well aware that his chances of winning a second Super Bowl are only decreasing with every playoff disappointment.
“Football mortality is something that we all think about,’’ Rodgers said. “We all think about how many more opportunities we’re going to be afforded, and each one is special. Each season is special and unique in its own way — as has this one been.
“There’s four teams left on the NFC side and we’re one of them. We get to host playoff games [the Packers have home-field advantage as long as they’re alive],” he continued. “This is a special opportunity. We’re not going to make it bigger than it is. We’ve gotten this far being level-headed and even-keeled and not riding a roller coaster of emotions and we’re going to keep on doing the same thing.”
Rodgers will undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest to play the position, and will arguably leave the game as the most talented quarterback in the history of football. But finishing his career with just the one Super Bowl ring would fall short of expectations, and will allow the talking heads to question his greatness when looking back.
It’s simple for Rodgers. Win another Super Bowl and the questions go away. Suffer another playoff failure and the questions will only get louder and more frequent.
The views expressed in this piece are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
Joe Morgan is the Sports Reporter for The Daily Wire. Most recently, Morgan covered the Clippers, Lakers, and the NBA for Sporting News. Send your sports questions to [email protected].
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Source: Dailywire
