“It’s absolutely spiralling. This is called acceptance” – NFL analyst claims Aaron Rodgers has accepted his decline
Aaron Rodgers has been losing for the last month and pundits are beginning to frame this as his final decline towards retirement. NFL analyst Ryan Clark claimed in his first season without Davante Adams that the quarterback had lost his spark and looked at Josh Allen as someone he used to be. Here's how the analyst put it on Get Up:
"It's absolutely spiralling. This is called acceptance. So many times in the world, we feel like we can change things and make things different. When you look at the Green Bay Packers, you actually can."
He continued, claiming the quarterback lost his belief during Sunday Night Football:
"I believe Aaron Rodgers, who had the ultimate belief in himself, which gave him a belief in his team, looked at himself last night and said, 'you know what, that guy, number 17, I used to be him.'"
Lastly, he claimed that Aaron Rodgers looked back at his trio of 13-win seasons as a different era that ultimately failed:
"'I was actually him just last year and when I was him just last year and the year before and the year before that, we [had] 13 [wins], 13 [wins] and 13 [wins ]and we couldn't win a Super Bowl with those teams.'"
With the Packers underperforming and underwhelming this season, the question is arising as to whether Aaron Rodgers is on the decline.
Is Aaron Rodgers declining?
In 2020, the Green Bay Packers quarterback threw for a career-high 48 touchdowns and five interceptions. In 2021, he threw for 37 touchdowns and four interceptions. In 2022, through eight games, he has thrown for 13 touchdowns and four interceptions. If he maintains his current pace, the quarterback will have about 26 touchdowns and eight interceptions at the end of the season.
Meaning, in two straight seasons, the quarterback will have thrown substantially fewer touchdowns and more interceptions. Of course, fans will argue that the loss of Davante Adams has a lot to do with that. Others will respond by listing his age at almost 39 years old. It is possible that the quarterback is declining, but in reality it is too soon to be certain.
Will Rodgers and the Packers find a new gear, buck the trend and silence their critics? With the wolves beginning to circle, the clock is certainly ticking.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Get Up and H/T Sportskeeda.