Cal Sports Report

Was the Packers' Loss to Lions Aaron Rodgers' Last Game?

Former Cal quarterbacks Rodgers and Jared Goff both fail to get into the postseason.

Jake Curtis

Did former Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers play his final game at Lambeau Field Sunday night?  Did he play his final game, period?

He came into Sunday's game against the Detroit Lions hoping to earn a playoff spot, knowing a win against the Lions would put him into the postseason for a fourth straight season despite the team's 4-8 start.  But it was another former Cal quarterback, Jared Goff, who helped snuff out the Packers' postseason hopes as Goff led the Lions' 20-16 upset victory even though that did not get the Lions did not get into the postseason either.

Rodgers said after the game he has not decided whether he will return next season.

"It's a little raw right now," he said. "It's just a little bit after the game. Want to take the emotion out of it. Have conversation, see where the organization's at, and see how I feel after a little time here."

He noted the decision is not entirely his, and that the Packers will have a say.  He didn't dismiss the idea that he might play for another team if traded, but he did not seem eager to entertain that idea. He said the result of Sunday's game won't affect his decision, although he would have preferred to end up on top.

"Doesn't always end with rainbows for everyone," Rodgers said.

And while Rodgers' future is in question, Goff may have solidified his position as the Lions starting quarterback for the long term, something that was in doubt a few months ago.

Both quarterbacks began the day thinking a playoff spot could be theirs.  But neither is heading to the postseason. 

The Lions (9-8) finished tied with the Seattle Seahawks (9-8) for the seventh and final playoff spot in the NFC, but because the Seahawks beat the Lions in their regular-season meeting earlier this season, it will be the Seahawks who will face the second-seeded San Francisco 49ers next weekend on the 49ers home field. The Niners come into the postseason on a 10-game winning streak.

When Seattle defeated the Rams 19-16 in overtime earlier Sunday it eliminated the Lions from playoff contention, so the Lions' only motivation entering the game against the Packers was a chance to finish with a winning record for the first time since 2017.

They achieved that by winning for the eighth time in their last 10 games following a 1-6 start. 

Before the season began, it was believed that the Lions might move on from Goff after this season, his second as the Lions starting quarterback. But his standout play over the second half of the season presumably will make the Lions rethink that strategy.  

Goff did not have his best game Sunday, and started slowly, going 2-for-7 for 18 yards in the first quarter.  He wore gloves on both hands to combat the chilly temperature in Green Bay, and it seemed to affect his accuracy.

However, he got better as the game went on and finished 23-of-34 for 224 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions.

Over the final nine games, he threw 15 touchdown passes with no interceptions, the main reason the Lions were in position for a run at a postseason berth. He led the Lions to an 8-2 record over the final 10 games and to within a tiebreaker of their first playoff berth since 2016.  You'd have to think Goff will retain the starting quarterback role in the 2023 season, when the young Lions could make some noise.

He made two big throws on Sunday.

The first was this completion (below) that put Detroit in position for a touchdown that put Detroit ahead 13-9.

The second was a 6-yard completion to DJ Chark on a fourth-and-1 play from the Green Bay 15-yard line with 1:14 left in the game. That allowed the Lions to run out the clock, snuffing out Rodgers' chance for a postseason berth and possibly sending him into retirement.

The 39-year-old Rodgers has hinted the past two offseasons that he considered retiring, and he said this week he will consider retirement again this offseason.

He won the last two of his four MVPs the past two seasons, but he was not nearly as efficient this season as he was in 2020 and 2021.  And Rodgers did not resemble an MVP in Sunday's game.

His numbers were not awful.  He finished 17-for-27 for 205 yards, one touchdown and one interception and a passer rating of 83.1. Rodgers finishes with his worst passer rating for a season in his NFL career in his 15 seasons as a starter.

Rodgers is second alltime in career passer rating, behind only Patrick Mahomes, who is only in his fifth season as a starter.

This disappointing season may be reason for him to hang it up.  However, he nearly led the Packers back top the postseason after a 4-8 start.  Green Bay came into the game on a four-game winning streak, and it only needed to beat the Lions at Lambeau to get to the postseason.

Rodgers put the Packers ahead in the third quarter after they trailed 13-9.

Rodgers' deep pass to Christian Watson put Green Bay in position to score a touchdown.

After that completion to Watson, a touchdown pass from Rodgers to Allen Lazard finished off that drive, which gave Green Bay a 16-13 lead in the third quarter.

But the Lions marched 75 yards to retake the lead, and Rodgers threw an interception on the Packers' ensuing possession to give the Lions a chance to run out the clock.

That interception was Rodgers' final throw of the game and could become the last throw of his career. He finished the season with 12 interceptions, the most in a season for him since he threw 13 picks back in 2008 in his first season as an NFL starter.

Rodgers' ability to avoid turnovers was one of his strengths.  He had not thrown more than five interceptions in any of the previous four seasons, so 12 picks stands out, and may be a reason to call it a career.

He said he could even walk away for the vast amount of money remaining on his contract if it comes to that.

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Cover photo of Aaron Rodgers and Randall Cobb is by Wm Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin, USA TODAY NETWORK

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Jake Curtis
JAKE CURTIS

Jake Curtis worked in the San Francisco Chronicle sports department for 27 years, covering virtually every sport, including numerous Final Fours, several college football national championship games, an NBA Finals, world championship boxing matches and a World Cup. He was a Cal beat writer for many of those years, and won awards for his feature stories.

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