I've never claimed to be a sports expert. I've never played a game at a professional level. I have no “hot takes”. I don’t know what a player is “thinking”. I don't analyze. I don't "break down" sh*t. I just see what I see, and what I see in the 2020 version of Aaron Rodgers is one of the greatest performances in sports history, not football history, sports history.
Aaron Rodgers is playing at a level I've never never seen before. He’s playing a different game than the other 21 players on the field. In fact, in all my years of watching sports there is only one player I have ever watched who played at this level. Not Michael Jordan. Not Tiger Woods.
The Great One. Wayne Gretzky.
Gretzky wasn’t the fastest player on the ice. He wasn’t the flashiest player on the ice. He was the smartest. He saw the ice in a way no one else could. He knew exactly where everyone was on the ice at any given moment. More impressive than being the NHL’s all time leading goal scorer, he is the NHL’s all-time assists leader and not by a close margin either. By seven hundred and freaking fourteen more assists. That's insane. How is that possible? The answer is simple. He just knew.
I feel the same way watching QB1. He's not the fastest. Not the flashiest. He's the smartest and he sees the field in a completely different way. How did he see that receiver? How did he get the ball to him? How did get away from the defense? It’s not a new coach. It's not a new system. It’s not a new diet or training regimen. It’s not a visit to the Dali Lama. The answer is simple. He just knew.
You can't coach it. You can't teach it. You can't put a finger on it. You can't even motivate it out of someone. It just is. You either have it or you don't and Aaron Rodgers has it.
Spend a couple of minutes comparing the two players performances and see if you agree. If you don’t, that’s fine. But what you can't deny is that we are witnessing something very rare in sports and we must never forget that, no matter who hoists the Lombardi Trophy on February 7.
My two...
Photos: Getty Images