PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Aaron Rodgers continued to bow, wince, the Green Bay star and reigning NFL MVP was openly in pain.
Rodgers was ruled out with injuries in a loss to the Eagles.
He’s not ready to wave the white flag of the season just yet.
“As long as we’re mathematically alive, I’d love to be there,” Rodgers said.
Rodgers suffered rib injuries late in the third quarter, followed by a broken right thumb he suffered weeks ago. He was forced to leave early in another Packers loss, nearly eliminating them from playoff contention.
Rodgers was 11-of-16 passing for 140 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions in a 40-33 loss in Philadelphia on Sunday night.
The question now is whether Rodgers will miss much or no time?
Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur said it was too early to determine whether Rodgers will be healthy enough to play against Chicago on Sunday.
“We need to have more conversation before we ever get into that,” LaFleur said. “As long as he can go, I expect him to be there.”
Rodgers, who turns 39 this week, said he was also worried about a punctured lung. That scare paid off, but Rodgers said he needs more tests on Monday to figure out the severity of the rib injuries.
“The pain was severe,” he said. “I couldn’t really breathe or turn my upper body.”
But he expected to play.
The Packers (4-8) have little to play for and could take out Rodgers to take a closer look at backup Jordan Love, their 2020 first-round pick.
Love connected with Christian Watson on a 63-yard, catch-and-run touchdown that cut Philly’s lead to 37–30 in the fourth. He was 6-of-9 passing for 113 yards.
Already playing with a broken right thumb in recent weeks, Rodgers appeared to be sore on a drive in the third that led to a Packers field goal. Rodgers attempted only a few short throws and grimaced after releasing the ball.
LaFleur said he was about to call a pass in the third when it became clear that Rodgers couldn’t really throw.
“So we went on run after run after run,” he said.
Rodgers hurt his thumb on October 9 during a thwarted Hail Mary attempt in the final play of the Packers’ 27-22 loss to the New York Giants in London. Although the Packers have since listed Rodgers with a thumb injury, only this week had the four-time MVP publicly said he was broken.
Rodgers said his thumb “felt pretty good this week” and he hasn’t talked about a possible surgery yet.
The Packers were 4-6 in 2016 as Rodgers predicted the team would “run the table”. Sure enough, a win in Philadelphia started an eight-game winning streak that sent the Packers to the NFC championship game, where they lost to Atlanta.
Not this week in Philly, not against Jalen Hurts and his 157-yard rush—an Eagles record for a quarterback.
Rodgers said he is still waiting until the offseason to make a decision about his future.
Rodgers hasn’t missed a single game, but the injury has limited his practice time and he hasn’t reached the level he reached while earning MVP honors each of the past two seasons. That loss to the Giants sparked a 1-7 tailspin that has jeopardized the three-time defending NFC North champion’s playoff hopes.
“We’ve got five games, we have to win all five,” said Rodgers. “And we probably need some help.”
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