Is Aaron Rodgers a god among men? If Sunday night's epic performance is any indication, perhaps he is.
Just an hour after suffering what looked to be a catastrophic knee injury, Aaron Rodgers returned to the field for a second-half comeback for the ages, bringing the Green Bay Packers back from 20 points down to an improbable 24-23 victory over the Chicago Bears.
"It's the Bears-Packers rivalry. So it'd have to take something really catastrophic injury wise to keep me off the field the second half," Rodgers told NBC's Michele Tafoya after the game. "I went in the locker room, did all the test in our indoor facility trying to get it loosen up. But I knew once I got back on the field the adrenaline started going I would be able to hang in there."
"I just felt something in it," Rodgers said on NBC. "Was having a hard time putting weight on it. The doc and I had a conversation. We did the tests. I told him I was going back."
Asked how serious his injury is, Rodgers added, "We'll do tests tomorrow, and I'll have a better answer for you when I talk Wednesday."
DeShone Kizer replaced Rodgers under center on Green Bay's next drive, but was wholly ineffective. The former Browns starter lost a fumble in the red zone and threw a pick six to Khalil Mack in barely a quarter's worth of work.
Upon surprisingly returning to the field, Rodgers promptly went 17 of 23 for 273 yards on four second-half scoring drives. Green Bay kicked a field goal on the first march, and on the next three drives, Rodgers threw touchdown passes to his favorite receivers, Geronimo Allison (39 yards), Davante Adams (12 yards) and Randall Cobb (75 yards), the last of which won the contest.
The 20-point comeback is the largest of Rodgers' career.
"I told the guys at halftime I said, 'If you shut them out, we're going to win.' We gave up six, but I just had a feeling if we could spark it and get things going," Rodgers said before adding that he expects to play next week against the Vikings. "If we just put together a couple of drives. [I was] disappointed with the field goal. And then guys started making plays. That's what we said in the huddle. We gotta make some plays. Geronimo [Allison] had a great catch. And then Randall [Cobb] ran about 80 yards for a touchdown. That was pretty special."
The injury and incredible comeback came on the heels of Rodgers' massive pay raise. The Packers quarterback just signed a record four-year, $134 million extension with $100 million in guarantees.
The Packers escaped disaster and achieved near ecstasy in the span of three hours. Losing Rodgers for any extended period of time would have been a death knell for Green Bay's postseason hopes and obviously the worst-case scenario for an organization that just invested a massive amount of capital in him. Not to mention a devastating setback for one of the league's most well-respected and -revered athletes.
For now, it appears Rodgers' season and Green Bay's pursuit of another Lombardi will continue -- with quite some momentum.
