Ranking Aaron Rodgers' top 3 Hail Mary plays
Aaron Rodgers has established himself as one of the most exciting Hail Mary throwing quarterbacks in history. Rodgers has even been deemed the "King of the Hail Mary" as he is one of the few quarterbacks to have multiple successful Hail Mary plays.
Rodgers's illustrious career spans 17 seasons, and he is arguably one of the top three quarterbacks playing today. He has cemented himself as such with plenty of jaw-dropping plays.
Here are Rodgers' top three Hail Mary plays.
Which of Aaron Rodgers' Hail Mary plays was the most impressive?
#3 - Motown Miracle
The infamous play, which has been dubbed the "Motown Miracle," was a Hail Mary play in which Rodgers effectively took down long-time rival Detroit Lions. Back in the 2015 season, the Green Bay Packers and Lions were deep in the final seconds of the fourth quarter.
The Miracle in Motown checks in at #52! #NFL100 #GoPackGo
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The Packers were down 21-23 to the Lions as the last second ticked away. Rodgers scrambled around as the Lions' defense was closing in. Rodgers ran backward for around 10 yards before returning to the line of scrimmage and heaving the ball downfield.
The ball fell to the Earth, surrounded by blue and green/yellow uniforms. Tight end Richard Rodgers leaped into the air and came down with the ball. The Packers would win on a walk-off touchdown and the final score would be 27-23.
#2 - Rodgers sends it to OT
A month later, Rodgers attempted to pull off another impressive Hail Mary pass. This time, the Packers were taking on the Arizona Cardinals in the divisional round of the 2015 playoffs.
47. HAIL NO, NOT AGAIN
Jan. 16, 2016
Falling away from the throw, Packers QB Aaron Rodgers launches 41-yard TD pass to Jeff Janis, sending playoff game into OT, where Cardinals win it.
Factoid: Rodgers did it again in the following playoffs for third Hail Mary TD in 13 months. https://t.co/gEo5hRWF1C
The Packers were down 13-20 to the Cardinals with the final seconds of the fourth quarter ticking down. Rodgers was once again under pressure from an opposing defender as he was left scrambling behind the line of scrimmage. Rodgers heaved the ball into the air with less than five seconds left. Wide receiver Jeff Janis leaped into the air and caught a Hail Mary touchdown to send the game into OT.
Unfortunately, the Packers would lose the game in overtime, but it was not because of a lack of tries from Rodgers.
#1 - Rodgers to Cobb
There should be a growing theme here, in that Rodgers is the king of the Hail Mary touchdown pass. This time, the Packers were taking on the New York Giants in the wildcard round of the playoffs in the 2017 season. Rodgers effectively threw another Hail Mary a year after the above-mentioned one against the Cardinals.
#FBF to @AaronRodgers12 INCREDIBLE Hail Mary in last year's Wild Card game against the Giants 😱
This year's Wild Card Round starts TOMORROW! 🎉 https://t.co/MwgaQU7oFl
Rodgers fired off another Hail Mary from behind the 50-yard line. The final seconds of the first half were ticking away when the Packers were ahead with a score of 7-6. Why not go for a last-ditch effort? That was exactly what happened when Rodgers heaved the ball into the very back of the endzone. Randall Cobb caught the ball and completed a double-toe touch to cap off an impressive touchdown.
The Packers went on to smash the Giants 38-15 in this game.