Despite leading the Green Bay Packers to victory against the Chicago Bears at Week 7, the team could still demote Aaron Rodgers to the backup quarterback spot due to his struggles. Playing as the team's new starting QB could then be Brett Hundley.
On Thursday, Rodgers threw three touchdowns for 326 yards, which gave the Packers the advantage that they need to edge out the Bears. Although Rodgers played what could be his best game in the season, there are still a few flaws in his performance. If these issues persist, he could get replaced by Hundley for the rest of the year.
One of the problems with Rodgers' performance is the way he reads the team's running backs. Oftentimes, he has a hard time finding an open running back. However, as noted by NBC Sports, the problem here is not with the running backs. Instead, Rodgers may have troubles calculating his passes. Since he's always waiting for someone to get open, he tends to miss the small window when his running backs are actually free. By the time he throws the ball, they may have already been swamped by the opposing team's defenses.
"I think what really has happened is that there is a lack of trust with Aaron Rodgers," former Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner said. "That lack of trust is when you go out as a quarterback and your receivers haven't gotten open, it's hard to anticipate that they're going to get open on time."
"So as a quarterback, you drop back and you kind of just in the back of your mind are going, ‘Ok, probably not going to get open, I'm going to have to buy some time and make a play,'" he added. "And then all of a sudden they get open on time and you're like, ‘Hey he got open' and you're a half-second late."
Another issue with Rodgers' performance is his adaptability. As shown in previous games, he's at his best when he's out of the pocket. However, since the opposing team's defensive line tend to keep him in the pocket, this affects his ability to throw.
If he wants to improve his game, he has to get used to throwing from inside the pocket.
