Despite the Loss, the Patriots May Have Broken Aaron Rodgers
(PHOTO: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 2 minutes
Posted Under: NFL
(PHOTO: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports) 🕑 Read Time: 2 minutes
New England Patriots > Patriots Blog
(PHOTO: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports) Bill Belichick is no stranger to finding an opponent’s weakness and exploiting it, and it appears his efforts three weeks ago may have helped other teams beat the Packers.
After the Patriots forced overtime two weeks ago and nearly pulled off an upset before ultimately falling to Green Bay, the Packers have lost their last two games, with Aaron Rodgers playing some of his worst football of the season.
After New England’s defense held Rodgers to 21-of-35 (60%) for 251-yards with two touchdowns along with one pick-six, Rodgers has endured two outings that haven’t gone much better.
The 60% completion percentage he posted against the Patriots was far lower than the 76% and 77% he posted against the Bears and Buccaneers in Weeks 2 and 3 respectively. But since playing New England, he’s been held to a 64% and 63% completion rate against both the Giants and Jets (again, respectively), his lowest marks since they lost the opener back in Week 1 when Rodgers completed just 22-of-34 (64.7%) for 195-yards with no touchdowns and an interception.
Each of these last two contests have resulted in losses and both have come at home. This last one, a 27-10 beatdown against the Jets this past Sunday, is seemingly hitting them pretty hard. It dropped them to 3-3 on the season and now has them in second place in the NFC North behind 5-1 Minnesota, who has won its last four straight.
Rodgers told reporters after the game that he has no plans to alter his approach and he’s sending the same message to the guys around him in the locker room.
“If it’s good enough when we’re 3-1, it’s got to be good enough when were 3-3,” said Rogers. “You can’t ride the rollercoaster wave of emotions. Like I said, I mean, it’s going to be interesting to see how we all respond to this tomorrow and this week. I felt like we had a great week of practice so this performance today was surprising. But we’ve got to watch our language and the kind of energy that we’re manifesting. But I’m going to be steady with the guys and I expect our leadership to do the same.”
Losing two in a row at home will likely sting as the Packers will now head out on the road for their next three-straight games, which includes match-ups against the Commanders, Bills, and Lions. They won’t play at home again at Lambeau Field until November 13th when Dallas comes in for a visit.
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