DannoMac21
08-27-2010, 02:49 PM
Some very interesting things in here...I'll only paraphrase some of the things he said...
SN: How much better are you now than you were in 2007, your third and final season as Favre's backup?
AR: I felt like I was ready my third year to play, but I'm definitely a lot better going into year 6 than I was going into year 3.
SN: You also described then what you looked forward to most about becoming a starter: "I'm excited about doing things the way I want them. We're going to be a team that's united and connected." No disrespect to Favre, you explained, but you hoped to be more woven in with the guys. Is that how things have gone for you?
AR: I think every leader leads differently. My style of leadership is different than Favre's, and the guy who follows me will be different. I lead by example. I enjoy my time with the guys, enjoy spending time, doing a lot of stuff off the field. We go to the Kentucky Derby, we go on trips, we golf, hang out, play guitar. We spend a lot of time together and are a very close-knit team. As a leader and a quarterback, you need to look for those moments to spend time with the guys because it's important for team chemistry.
SN: Who's the best QB in the game today?
AR: Drew Brees is a good friend of mine; I work out with him in the offseason, and it was fun to watch him win the Super Bowl because I know how hard he worked from March to July, and I got to work alongside him and see how he did it. That's a guy who put up big numbers for a while and finally it paid off in a Super Bowl win, so I'm definitely proud of him and happy for him. I got to work with Tony Romo at the Pro Bowl and really enjoy watching him play. I think we have similar games; we both make plays outside the pocket and do some unorthodox things, him maybe more than me, but he makes it work. But the guy who I want to be like is Tom Brady. That's because he has won three Super Bowls and had a ton of success and done it the right way. He does stuff in the pocket that nobody else does; he's able to make subtle movements in the pocket strictly based on a feel that other people just can't do. Although Peyton Manning, when he's retired, will probably be the most decorated quarterback statistically in NFL history.
SN: Is (Green Bay), or should it be, a hot place for NFL players to want to come? Because it didn't used to be.
AR: I hope so, I really do. I definitely know some stories about free agents who would never consider here. One guy in particular who we were interested in signing a few years back wouldn't take a trip up here until a deal was in place. So you get disappointed about that a little, but at the same time Ted Thompson's philosophy I really enjoy--we draft guys, they go through our system and we pay them. You look around here, a lot of guys were drafted by the Packers and stuck around: Mark Tauscher, Chad Clifton, Donald Driver. And then younger guys like myself, Greg Jennings, Nick Collins, Nick Barnett--guys who are on their second contracts now with the Packers who were drafted by the Packers.
SN: Do you ever imagine what might have been if that rumored 2007 trade to the Raiders for Randy Moss had happened?
AR: Well, I know the basis of that rumor and always knew it was not legitimate, so I have a different perspective on that. But there were 23 picks before I got picked in 2005, so there definitely could've been a different situation or scenario: playing time, who I'm playing with, where, coaches, coaching changes. But I'm glad I'm here. Green Bay wanted me, and I'm forever grateful for that and hopefully will repay them with another trophy in the case.
SN: Look ahead 10 years. What's the Aaron Rodgers story?
AR: Ten years, I think I'll be done. One way or another--either playing well and retired, or not playing well and on the street--I'll probably be done. But hopefully the legacy I'll leave is one of somebody who was of high character, did things the right way, cared about his teammates, and was coachable and was good to the community he lived in.
There's a lot more questions in the magazine...but I thought some of those answers from AR were very interesting. Some of the questions in response to Favre were interesting, and while he's not taking shots, I think he's telling it how he his. Favre was never close to the teammates and didn't have a great relationship with anyone on the team.
I also found the Randy Moss part very interesting as well, me being one of the guys who were dying to get Moss.
SN: How much better are you now than you were in 2007, your third and final season as Favre's backup?
AR: I felt like I was ready my third year to play, but I'm definitely a lot better going into year 6 than I was going into year 3.
SN: You also described then what you looked forward to most about becoming a starter: "I'm excited about doing things the way I want them. We're going to be a team that's united and connected." No disrespect to Favre, you explained, but you hoped to be more woven in with the guys. Is that how things have gone for you?
AR: I think every leader leads differently. My style of leadership is different than Favre's, and the guy who follows me will be different. I lead by example. I enjoy my time with the guys, enjoy spending time, doing a lot of stuff off the field. We go to the Kentucky Derby, we go on trips, we golf, hang out, play guitar. We spend a lot of time together and are a very close-knit team. As a leader and a quarterback, you need to look for those moments to spend time with the guys because it's important for team chemistry.
SN: Who's the best QB in the game today?
AR: Drew Brees is a good friend of mine; I work out with him in the offseason, and it was fun to watch him win the Super Bowl because I know how hard he worked from March to July, and I got to work alongside him and see how he did it. That's a guy who put up big numbers for a while and finally it paid off in a Super Bowl win, so I'm definitely proud of him and happy for him. I got to work with Tony Romo at the Pro Bowl and really enjoy watching him play. I think we have similar games; we both make plays outside the pocket and do some unorthodox things, him maybe more than me, but he makes it work. But the guy who I want to be like is Tom Brady. That's because he has won three Super Bowls and had a ton of success and done it the right way. He does stuff in the pocket that nobody else does; he's able to make subtle movements in the pocket strictly based on a feel that other people just can't do. Although Peyton Manning, when he's retired, will probably be the most decorated quarterback statistically in NFL history.
SN: Is (Green Bay), or should it be, a hot place for NFL players to want to come? Because it didn't used to be.
AR: I hope so, I really do. I definitely know some stories about free agents who would never consider here. One guy in particular who we were interested in signing a few years back wouldn't take a trip up here until a deal was in place. So you get disappointed about that a little, but at the same time Ted Thompson's philosophy I really enjoy--we draft guys, they go through our system and we pay them. You look around here, a lot of guys were drafted by the Packers and stuck around: Mark Tauscher, Chad Clifton, Donald Driver. And then younger guys like myself, Greg Jennings, Nick Collins, Nick Barnett--guys who are on their second contracts now with the Packers who were drafted by the Packers.
SN: Do you ever imagine what might have been if that rumored 2007 trade to the Raiders for Randy Moss had happened?
AR: Well, I know the basis of that rumor and always knew it was not legitimate, so I have a different perspective on that. But there were 23 picks before I got picked in 2005, so there definitely could've been a different situation or scenario: playing time, who I'm playing with, where, coaches, coaching changes. But I'm glad I'm here. Green Bay wanted me, and I'm forever grateful for that and hopefully will repay them with another trophy in the case.
SN: Look ahead 10 years. What's the Aaron Rodgers story?
AR: Ten years, I think I'll be done. One way or another--either playing well and retired, or not playing well and on the street--I'll probably be done. But hopefully the legacy I'll leave is one of somebody who was of high character, did things the right way, cared about his teammates, and was coachable and was good to the community he lived in.
There's a lot more questions in the magazine...but I thought some of those answers from AR were very interesting. Some of the questions in response to Favre were interesting, and while he's not taking shots, I think he's telling it how he his. Favre was never close to the teammates and didn't have a great relationship with anyone on the team.
I also found the Randy Moss part very interesting as well, me being one of the guys who were dying to get Moss.