Aaron Rodgers: Enigma

As a long time fan of Tom Brady I have disliked A. R. for the last 10 years or so. I couldn't comprehend the admiration for a guy who just won 1 Super bowl, and the perception by pundits that he was better than Brady, who won 7. Today that discussion holds no more, but I recognize I couldn't fathom the guy, his decisions and stands on several hot topics. He came across as arrogant, aloof, I-know-all kind of person, and after watching the mini series he agrees to that perception, calling it "the observer", and comparing it to his "ego". The interesting consequence of my watching the documentary is that I realize than I am closer to him as a man than I am to Brady, so there must have been a Jungian bias in my judgment. Now I see AR as a complete man, someone that has much more value than meets the eye, someone that has made a conscient effort to go through a lot of pain and criticism to achieve a better understanding of himself, and therefore improve as a human being. The documentary finds the right balance between the player and the man, and does it in a very accurate way. Highly recommendable (except if you don't like the NFL)

7.3 stars.

I was intrigued by this documentary. I wanted to see inside the mind of Aaron Rodgers, and I think this is probably what he believes. This is a look inside the mind of Aaron Rodgers from the perspective of Aaron Rodgers.

What do you expect? He is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. If he had three championship rings, half the people out there would say that he is the GOAT. But since he was unable to secure those special accolades that only a Super Bowl can provide, except the one time, he is immediately tossed aside, and put into the pile of other great quarterbacks, but not the best of the best, top five quarterbacks.

Arguably he is in the top five. Look at how many quarterbacks won MVP four times. All you need to do is look. Peyton Manning has five, AR is second with four. But if you count quarterback rating as the number one indicator, Aaron Rodgers by far is the best QB of all time. And yet, if you look at all the top 10 QB all time lists, he's not even in the top five. You can't ignore the stats. This guy is in the top 2 or 3 of all time, most definitely top 5.

Most likely his downfall is that when it came to the extreme pressure, he didn't quite have what Tom Brady and Joe Montana have. But if you look at his overall stats, he far surpasses them both. So where do you draw the line?

Ok, so he's arrogant. Most of them are, but because of the 2020 debacle, his image is tarnished forever? Credit where credit is due. They are almost all arrogant, it goes with the territory. You would be too, especially if you had difficulty sorting out real friends from fake ones. That sort of life makes a person arrogant. They have to work on getting past that difficulty. What we see as arrogance is merely a facade of an extremely talented person putting a protective bubble around himself.

A sure NFL Hall of Famer, which Eve greatness on the field, but hast to face so many influences off the field and is seemingly looking for peace. I don't find anything wrong with that, to each his own. He's been both of the outspoken leader, he's been the outspoken off the field person who challenges ideals that are out there, I know it's crazy that someone of his status actually says that he does not agree with certain doctrine in our social and political landscape. Believe me, the NFL is a melting pot for sure, but they have within them all of their beliefs and all of their experiences that make them the people they are and drive them to success. They choose to put that all aside and not make the NFL a social experiment, but make it a meritocracy with the goal. Winning just about at all costs. It is a moment in time in their lives. That is a very smart approach. The social fabric of our society is tribal and will destroy organizations where those tribes are all mixed together. I can't blame a guy who's trying to find his way even at 40+ years old. Not to mention, no one here that has reviewed this and bashed him to know and can withstand a microscopic review of their own life where they've made "" no mistakes ". It doesn't happen. No one can withstand that scrutiny. This was different from your typical NFL profile but he is different as well. Kind of reminds me of George Harrison of the Beatles who got into different things at that time. God bless him. I respect him for all the work he's done on the field and wish him well on his journey. And I'm not a Packers fan or a Jets fan however I do appreciate greatness.

Aaron Rodgers is one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented American sports superstars of all time. Media and brainwashed people all around the country have created an agenda against him because of his personal choices. By diving deeper into Rodgers' interviews, his own podcasts, or balanced journalistic profiles, one can often gain a more nuanced understanding of his personality and choices. Misrepresentation often arises from a combination of personal complexity, cultural differences, and media dynamics, which this docu does fairly well. It succeeds in showcasing his complexities but stops short of delivering a fully balanced portrayal. For die-hard Rodgers fans, it's a must-watch. For others, it's an intriguing, albeit incomplete, exploration of a modern-day sports icon.

I went into this thinking I'd check out the 1st episode, but after that I was hooked. I had to binge it all.

This documentary starts out slow for about the first 15 minutes, but then really starts to get interesting. You get to see what happened behind so many of the biggest media headlines of the past 20 years. From Rodgers' roots playing high school football, to what happened with he replaced Favre, to Jordan Love replacing Rodgers, to his ayahuasca trips, to his darkness retreat, to Rodgers getting traded, to his accelerated Achilles rehab regimen.

It also goes into Rodgers' mindset of how he reached greatness while interviewing several of his former coaches & teammates including Mike McCarthy, David Bakhtiari, Marshawn Lynch, & Matt Lafleur

Even the most locked in, hardcore NFL fans haven't heard this stuff. It was interesting to see how it all played out from the inside.

The documentary takes on an interesting format too, starting out slowly progressing & digressing through 2 entirely different timelines, both culminating at the beginning of the 2024 NFL season. This is a must watch for any NFL fan who wants the inside baseball on how it all played out.

I'll be watching this one again.

9/10.