Aaron Rodgers certainly didn’t have the best game of his young tenure with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3. But he did just enough to help his team secure a 21-14 win, though the defense deserves about 99.9 percent of the credit for that. Still, in throwing two TDs on the day, Rodgers also reached a major individual milestone.
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Rodgers’ fifth TD pass of the season (his sole scoring toss in a Week 2 loss) tied him with his old mentor, Brett Favre, for fourth on the NFL’s all-time passing TD list, at 508. Rodgers had sat for three years behind Favre with the Green Bay Packers from 2005 to 2007, and much has been made of their relationship. So, this was a big deal.
His next score from that game, a 12-yard strike to D.K. Metcalf in the second quarter that put Pittsburgh up 14-0 over the New England Patriots, moved Rodgers past Favre and into fourth place all by himself. Fellow veteran captain Cam Heyward, who had a sack and a crucial pass deflection in the game, joked with Rodgers afterward about finally catching his old mentor.
“I was messing with Aaron after the game… and I was like, ‘Congrats, you finally beat Brett!’ And he was like, ‘It only took 41 years to do that!’ (Laughs) And so, he made a comment, ‘Well, now I can just retire, because that’s all I cared about.’ But uh, you know, it’s fun that me and him poke at each other sometimes,” Heyward shared on the Not Just Football podcast.
Rodgers is clearly not taking himself too seriously. He went on to throw another TD ater on, a quintessential 17-yard back-shoulder fade to Calvin Austin in the fourth quarter. That gave the Steelers the Week 3 win while also pushing Rodgers’ career total to 510.
When asked after the game where passing Favre on the list ranks among his career achievements, Rodgers didn’t seem overly fussed, either.
“I mean, not super duper high. Uh, you know, it means I’ve played a long time. I grew up and 49ers quarterbacks were my favorite, and then Brett. And I got to play with Brett,” the QB told the media.
Instead, Rodgers took the opportunity to give some of his favorite QB peers their flowers. He mentioned Favre as well as the “49ers quarterbacks” that he grew up watching in California: Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young.
Surprisingly, Rodgers went on the longest about Phillip Rivers, who is sixth on the all-time pass TD list, with 421.
“I was drafted the year after Phil Rivers. Had a friendship through the game with him, for years. Loved watching Phil play. You know, just his mannerisms, his lack of swearing trash talk. Phil was one guy I really enjoyed watching on tape, and the only guy to get out of the Pro Bowl with an excuse that he had his eighth or ninth kid right before that. (Laughs) So, good to be mentioned with those guys.”
The only guys left in front of Rodgers are Peyton Manning (539), Drew Brees (571), and Tom Brady (649). With 14 games left in this season, it’s certainly possible Rodgers could catch Manning.
He’d need to throw about two TDs a game, which is the pace he’s been on so far (seven in three games). Brees would take at least another season or two to catch. It’s actually plausible. Catching Brady, however, would be a pipe dream.
