So after nearly a decade and a half of co-existing as starting QBs, we finally have it in the postseason: Brady vs Rodgers. This should have been the Super Bowl in about two separate occasions, but the football gods put the wheels in motion to have this battle for the NFC Championship this season. For Aaron Rodgers, it's one of two firsts for him. The other is that he will have the NFC Championship in his yard, on his turf, at Lambeau Field. Rodgers' past four appearances have seen him play in Chicago (2010), Seattle (2014), Atlanta (2016), and Santa Clara (2019), but he will finally have this game at home, as the Packers locked up the #1 seed and defeated the Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Playoff.
After two decades with the Patriots, Tom Brady crossed conference lines for the first time in his career, joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With loads of receiving weapons, his security blanket in the form of Gronk, and a strong defense, Brady and the Bucs went 11-5, and defeated Washington (Wild Card Playoff) and the Saints (Divisional Playoff) to reach this point and set up this clash of the 12s.
2020 Statistics
Green Bay Packers
Total Offense: 6,224 yds; 389 ypg (5th) Passing Offense: 4,106 yds; 256.6 ypg (9th) Rushing Offense: 2,118 yds; 132.4 ypg (8th) Total Defense: 5,344 yds; 334 ypg (9th) Passing Defense: 3,539 yds; 221.2 ypg (7th) Rushing Defense: 1,805 yds; 112.8 ypg (13th)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Total Offense: 6,145 yds; 384.1 ypg (7th) Passing Offense: 4,626 yds; 289.1 ypg (2nd) Rushing Offense: 1,519 yds; 94.9 ypg (28th) Total Defense: 5,234 yds; 327.1 ypg (6th) Passing Defense: 3,945 yds; 246.6 ypg (21st) Rushing Defense: 1,289 yds; 80.6 ypg (1st)
This is a rematch of the 38-10 drubbing that the Packers were on the receiving end on back in October. It was our first loss of the season and it wasn't Rodgers' best moment. Only 160 yards passing, no scores, two INTs--one of them returned all the way for a TD. Brady's performance wasn't that much better, only six more passing yards, but the main difference is that he threw two TDs. What gets left out is that statistically, the running game and defense led that team to victory; scoring three of the five Bucs TDs.
While the Bucs' defense stifled Rodgers' passing that day, they haven't come close to performing like that since. Overall, TB's passing defense is ranked in the lowest third in the league, but their run defense is still tops. Two top 10 defenses, offenses, and passing offenses, but their run game is terrible--despite racking up 158 rushing yards in the first meeting. And since that loss, Rodgers has thrown three INTs since then, thrown for under 200 once, and had five 4-TD games. So it's safe to say that neither of these teams are the same ones from that October early evening. That includes one big difference: the home field.
Prediction: Packers by 6
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