Merril Hoge’s NFL Draft take might be worst of all time - “I like Brian Brohm better than Aaron Rodgers”
Aaron Rodgers had a solid college career at the University of California, Berkeley, and was seen as a potential NFL franchise quarterback. The California native fell all the way to the 24th pick where he was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the 2005 NFL Draft.
However, Green Bay went quarterback once again in the 2008 NFL Draft, taking Brian Brohm out of the University of Louisville in the second round. After Brohm was taken, then-ESPN NFL analyst Merrill Hoge expressed an interesting take on the player when comparing him to Rodgers:
"Well, actually I do like [Brian] Brohm better than Aaron Rodgers. Aaron Rodgers is right now in his career. Let's look at the positives with Brohm. As Rece just mentioned, he's played in two pro-style systems. That's a plus when he comes to the NFL."
Todd McShay doubled down on Hoge's comments and said that Brohm would be the starting quarterback for the Green Bay Packers over Rodgers:
"Honestly, I think Brian Brohm, two years from now, could be the starting quarterback of the Green Bay Packers. It would not shock me at all, and I still think Aaron Rodgers has a chance as well, but I think Brian Brohm's upside is greater than that of Rodgers."
Brian Brohm played four seasons at Louisville, winning Big East Offensive Player of the Year in his sophomore season in 2005. He threw for 2,883 yards, 19 touchdowns, and five interceptions that season.
His 68.8 completion percentage in 2005 was the second-best in all of college football. In all, he finished second in school history with 10,775 yards passing and fourth with 71 touchdowns.
Did Brian Brohm become the Packers starting QB over Aaron Rodgers?
Dive into Sportskeeda's free 2024 NFL Mock Draft Simulator with trades across up to 7 rounds including user-to-sim, sim-to-user, and sim-to-sim trades. Powered by NFL Draft Expert Tony Pauline
Brohm never saw the field for Green Bay in the regular season but started two games in two seasons with the Buffalo Bills (2009 and 2010). The former Louisville star never threw a touchdown pass in his NFL career.
Aaron Rodgers took over from Brett Favre as the Packers' starter in the 2008 season. He started 223 regular-season and 21 playoff games for the Packers in his 18 seasons with the franchise. He's also led the team to a Super Bowl and has four NFL MVPs to his name.
The quarterback is Green Bay's all-time leader in touchdown passes with 475. Needless to say, both Hoge and McShay were just a tad bit off in their respective statements about both quarterbacks.