GREEN BAY, Wis. – Everyone else must be wondering how many chances Aaron Rodgers will have in the Super Bowl, but the Green Bay Packers quarterback says he is not one of them.
A few days from his fifth NFC championship game – and the fourth since his only Super Bowl appearance 10 years ago – Rodgers insisted he is not looking at Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the best last-chance scenario . Not even at 37 and with his possible replacement now in the squad.
“I’m always trying to be there, especially this year, as much as anything, and enjoy the moments,” said Rodgers on Wednesday. “I hope there are more opportunities, but I don’t know. I mean, I really don’t know. These things are out of my control. My future is a beautiful mystery, I think. The present is a gift to be able to stay in the moment and have gratitude for being in this situation again, and being with the crowd and having fans in our stadium and maybe snow in an NFC championship game. I will definitely enjoy these moments, and don’t worry about what happens in the future. “
That was Rodgers’ approach for most of the season. After the Packers replaced defender Jordan Love in the first round of last year’s draft, Rodgers acknowledged that he may no longer be able to control how his time ends at Green Bay.
But since that moment, his teammates and coaches have reported that Rodgers is in as good a mood as they saw him. The result could end up being the third MVP of Rodgers’ career.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to lead these guys again, for playing the way I want, for being called into a bigger leadership role,” said Rodgers. “These things are very, very important to me. But all the other things … are things I’m not going to focus on. Because for me it’s a beautiful mystery what happens in the future, but there will be a time when we will find this future, and now I’m just going to enjoy the present. “
He’s still looking for that second Super Bowl appearance. The Packers were defeated by the San Francisco 49ers in last year’s conference title game. The Packers equaled their 13-3 record a year ago, but this time they are number 1 and have the best NFL attack. Rodgers said after each of the last two defeats in NFC championship games that he wanted to have that game at home. Now he has.
“There is no more pressure than usual,” said Rodgers when asked if there is more pressure on him and the Packers this year. “I think often the plots, the pressure and that kind of comment are good things for you to write, but I think it starts with the mindset and the focus. Obviously, I put pressure on myself to perform every week, and I think that there’s a lot to be said about being able to control the pressure and fear of failure and focus on something really positive, that’s something you’ve learned over the years, but I don’t feel any extra pressure in this case.
“Definitely grateful to be back here. Many people didn’t think we would be back here after last season. We received a lot of interesting comments last year about being the worst 13-3 team that people have ever seen. Not the same kind of comments this [time]. Obviously, we are clicking much better in the attack, I am very grateful to be back here, grateful for the chance to be playing. “