Aaron Rodgers failed to make a deep playoff run with the Green Bay Packers, but the 38-year-old quarterback can still consider 2021 a success. At the NFL Honors award ceremony held on Thursday, Rodgers was recognized as the NFL’s Most Valuable Player during the regular season and picked up the MVP honors for the second consecutive year.
Rodgers finished the regular season with a 13-2 record in the 15 full games he played, throwing for 4,115 yards and 37 touchdowns with only four interceptions. His Packers entered the playoffs as the No. 1 seed in NFC but failed to progress past the Divisional Round.
En route to MVP honors, Rodgers received 39 votes from eligible voters, leaving behind legendary QB Tom Brady, who had 10, and LA Rams’ wideout Cooper Kupp, who received one vote. As a result, he became just the fifth player in NFL history to have back-to-back MVP seasons. Jim Brown, Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, and Joe Montana are the other four.
Rodgers now has four MVP awards on his resume, with Manning being the only player who has more with five. He won his first two in 2011 and 2014, respectively.
“They’re all different,” said Rodgers. “The first one was really, really special because we came off winning the Super Bowl, and I had my best season to date that next year. It seemed like we were a juggernaut chugging along and going to win another one. That obviously didn’t happen. The divisional round disappointment. But they’ve all been unique in their own ways. I think the latest one always feels the sweetest.”
The NFL Honors ceremony also saw outside linebacker T.J. Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers being named Defensive Player of the Year after tying the league’s record for most sacks in a single season. In addition, Kupp, who put together a historic season for a wide receiver, took home the award for Offensive Player of the Year. Unsurprisingly, Dallas Cowboys’ phenom Micah Parsons was named Defensive Rookie of the Year while Cincinnati Bengals’ WR Ja’Marr Chase got the Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
