Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady have played in multiple eras of the NFL, and they’ve seen many changes in the game, some for the betterment of the league and some to its detriment.
They all agreed that the game was too tightly regulated.
“The rule changes created a lot of bad habits,” the former Green Bay Packers quarterback said during a regular appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday while responding to Brady’s comments about Steph’s performance earlier this week. ·Responded to an interview on A. Smith’s YouTube show.
Brady made headlines on Monday when he expressed his views on the current state of the NFL in a wide-ranging interview, saying he doesn’t see the “excellence” he has seen in the past.
“There’s a lot of mediocrity in the NFL today,” Brady declared.
Brady said in addition to coaching and player development being “not great,” he also pointed to rule changes as playing a big role in that.
Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl champion and more than 20-year veteran with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has a huge influence on the game and his comments have drawn attention.
Aaron Rodgers reacts to Tom Brady’s comments about NFL rules
Rodgers agreed with Brady, a pair of future Hall of Famers who both suffered serious injuries from hits by defenders during their careers, that it would be “tough” to defend in today’s game.
Rodgers compared the NFL to the world at large.
“If you look at the big picture,” Rogers said, “the softening of society has led to things like this.”
“Look at all the sports,” he continued. “Hockey has no place as an enforcer. People want to see football as a collision sport but don’t want to see the extent to which players are getting injured on the field.”
Rodgers, like Brady, said he knows certain players “are great hitters” going into games and adjusts his strategy when they’re on the field.
This also applies to teams.
“When you play the Lions, you know every picture you take is going to be a blast,” Rodgers said. “Going back to ’08, ’09, ’10, ’11, ’12, ’13, ’14. Some movies, the games are officiated differently.”
Rodgers isn’t saying player safety shouldn’t be considered, just that some rules “go too far.”
“Some quarterbacks are rewarded sometimes for being late and taking very light throws,” he claimed. “Getting hit is part of the game.”
What was Anthony Barr’s attack on Aaron Rodgers?
Rodgers knows this all too well during his 19-year career, which was put on hold when he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in Week 1 of the season as a member of the New York Jets.
Rogers had a special hit to bring about change on Tuesday.
It’s week six of the 2017 season and the Packers take on the Minnesota Vikings. The Packers were coming off the NFC Championship Game, winning a shootout against the Dallas Cowboys to go into the game 3-1. But everything about the Packers, Rodgers, and the NFL changed with one hit.
After Rodgers passed the ball while rolling to his right in the first quarter, Minnesota’s Anthony Barr intercepted him outside the pocket and fell on him. Rogers remained prone. His collarbone was broken. The Packers turned to Brett Hundley and the team went 7-9 and missed the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons.
The penalty wasn’t awarded, and more than six years later, Rodgers seems content with it.
Rogers said he “didn’t feel like it was a dirty hit.”
“I didn’t pass the ball fast enough,” Rodgers said Tuesday. “He was able to catch me somehow. Unfortunately, it was a football game that went against me.”
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Did Anthony Barr’s hit on Aaron Rodgers in 2017 change the rules?
Rodgers said in an interview on Tuesday that Barr’s hit “changed a game in the NFL.”
The NFL did change the way defenders tackle quarterbacks after Barr hit Rodgers after the 2017 season.
To protect the quarterback, players can no longer land all or most of their body weight on top of the quarterback when the passer is in the “undefended position.”
The NFL showed teams Barr’s hit in a video explaining what was not allowed ahead of the 2018 season.
Rodgers said there must be a balance between safety and not viewing the quarterback position as a “flag football environment.”
“Nobody wants to go on a stabbing spree, but there’s a happy medium somewhere,” Rogers said.
