The Green Bay Packers are set to host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Lambeau for the NFC Championship this Sunday with the victor advancing to Super Bowl LV.
This is the Packers’ fourth appearance in seven years in the penultimate game of the season while the Buccaneers will be making just their fourth appearance in franchise history.
But experience is inverted when it comes to the teams’ quarterbacks. Aaron Rodgers will be making the fifth trip of his career while Bucs quarterback Tom Brady is heading to his 14th conference title game.
Six-time Super Bowl champion Brady had been to eight straight AFC title games with the New England Patriots before the streak was broken in 2019. He has a record of 9-4 while Rodgers’ record stands at 1-3 so far with his most recent loss coming last season against the San Francisco 49ers.
It’s a match-up that has all the ingredients for a memorable contest and although the Buccaneers trounced the Packers in the regular season, it would be foolish to think Matt LaFleur and his men would let them get away with it a second time.
Why Green Bay Packers will Defeat Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Championship
You Learn More From A Loss Than You Do From A Win
In the wake of their one-sided Week 6 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Aaron Rodgers described the game as ‘something we could really grow from’.
He was also insistent the game was an ‘anomaly’ and a ‘wake-up call’ as they went on to claim the top seed in the NFC.
It’s fair to say the Packers will clearly not be sleeping on the Bucs after their last performance let alone because of the heightened stakes.
The Packers were on a four-game winning streak and it’s easy to assume they had slipped into a state of complacency coming off a bye week and heading to Tampa.
Green Bay raced to a 10-0 lead but the Bucs’ defense unleashed a brutal campaign as they sacked Rodgers five times and refused to let him complete a touchdown pass all game.
The loss highlighted the team’s weaknesses for sure – but this time Green Bay is not coming off a bye and has just beaten the top defense in the league, running up a total of 32 points and 484 yards against the LA Rams.
What’s more, the Packers are 11-0 when they do not turn the ball over but turned it over twice against Tampa Bay in week 6. Aaron Rodgers threw two interceptions on consecutive drives, with the first being returned for six and shifting momentum firmly in Tampa’s favour.
The Bucs delivered another four turnovers against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday so the Packers will be aware ball protection is a priority.
And they’re good at it, having turned the ball over less than any other team in the league this season.
The Buccaneers Have Given the Packers NFC Championship Bulletin Board Material
After their one-sided victory over Green Bay, Tampa Bay linebacker Devin White said the Packers ‘didn’t deserve to be on the field’ with the Buccaneers – an odd comment to make about a team that was 4-0 heading into the game.
White said the Bucs had ‘too much talent and fly around to the ball’ for the Packers to handle.
It would be surprising if his comment wasn’t heard in the Green Bay locker room and more surprising if those players had forgotten White’s dig heading into Sunday’s match-up.
As most sports fans know, firing shots at opponents like this can backfire especially if it’s used as motivation to prove doubters wrong.
Green Bay is used to being underestimated and it’s fair to say few pundits expected them to make it to the NFC Championship game last season. Yet here they are again.
Now, the Packers are leading the league in points per game and are tied for the most 30-point games.
What’s more, they are on a seven-game winning streak which includes victories over three play-off teams and a win over the league’s best defence.
Devin White may have been right about the amount of talent on the Bucs’ roster but the Packers are a pretty talented bunch too and absolutely deserve to share the field this Sunday. It’s up to them now to prove it.
Aaron Rodgers is Playing MVP Level Football
The Green Bay Packers quarterback leads the league in completion percentage, completing 70.7% of 526 passes. Rodgers also leads the league in touchdown passes with 48 and QBR with a regular-season rating of 84.3.
To put this in perspective, six-time Super Bowl champ Tom Brady has completed 65.7% of his passes and had a regular-season QBR of 72.5.
They are two of the best quarterbacks to ever line up under center and it will be a competition to remember as Brady ranks third in the league in passing yards and yards per game and is second only to Rodgers in the number of touchdown passes.
But Rodgers is playing some of the best football of his career and is the presumptive MVP of the season, also beating Brady out in turnovers with five interceptions to Brady’s 12.
What’s more, Aaron Rodgers may be 1-3 in NFC Championship games but he has never hosted one at Lambeau Field. Meanwhile, Tom Brady is heading into his 14th championship game with a 9-4 record but he is 3-3 on the road.
And although Brady will be used to playing in the cold, his new Florida-based team may not. With temperatures set to be 20 degrees at kick-off on Sunday, this will be another advantage for the Packers and Aaron Rodgers.
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