Week 1 Vibes: Rodgers, LaFleur, Rookies

Aaron Rodgers reminisced about his first NFL game while rookies Quay Walker, Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs looked ahead to their professional debuts.

MINNEAPOLIS – Sunday is finally here. After years upon years of hard work and dedication, the Green Bay Packers’ rookies will play in their first NFL game. For players like Christian Watson, it’s not the finish line but this was the destination.

“Shoot, I started playing football when I was 4 years old, so it’s been a long time coming,” Watson said this week.

A long time but a short time.

“The whole process came by so fast,” linebacker Quay Walker said. “It was a small turnaround. As soon as we played in the [national championship game], we had to go get ready for the Combine and things like that. Everything’s gone by fast. Before you know it, we’ll be midway through the season.”

Or, if he’s lucky, headed into Year 18. That’s Aaron Rodgers. When he spoke at his locker on Wednesday, it was one day shy of the 15th anniversary of his first NFL start. On Sept. 8, 2008, Rodgers faced the Minnesota Vikings. The bright lights of Lambeau Field were nothing like the bright spotlight of his first game as Brett Favre’s replacement.

“The nerves definitely are less than maybe 2008 against Minnesota at home, thankfully, but it’s still exciting,” Rodgers said.

Here are some of those Week 1 vibes.

Aaron Rodgers, four-time MVP

“I think if you’re not nervous or don’t have the butterflies, maybe you’re doing the wrong thing. So, I’ll be excited to see how I feel before the game. I know there’s definitely excitement and excitement is paired with the anxiety that comes from the pressure of the performance being in the microscope. Your teammates, fans, the country and the excitement with which that brings, the challenge, I really enjoy that and look forward to starting off another season against a tough opponent and kind of seeing where we’re at in Week 1. Last year we saw where we were at in Week 1 and we weren’t very good, but we bounced back and turned into a pretty damn good team. So, we’re going to, again, be patient with our young guys, hold them to a high standard and hopefully get off to a little better start than we did last year.”

Matt LaFleur, fourth-year coach

More anxiety for Week 1 than other games?

“Yeah, I think so, but I think you’ve just got to try to stay in the moment, try to enjoy it. It’s an exciting time, certainly. Any chance you get to be a part of the National Football League is exciting. But when you talk about love, going into a hostile environment like Minnesota and hear that annoying horn that they like to blow and the Skol chant, it just creates for the team to really stay together. And it’s kind of, the guys on that sideline, the guys in that locker room vs. the entire stadium. So, hopefully it’ll bring us even closer together.”

Quay Walker, first-round draft pick

On growing up with dreams of the NFL.

“Football always was my dream but I kind of gave up on it. I stopped playing it in middle school. In high school, I was playing basketball. I was better at basketball at the time and football, I just felt like football wasn’t clicking. So, I didn’t try until a former coach who played at my high school convinced me to play it because he saw my size. I tried it out and everything turned out to be history. …

“I just wanted to play at a Division I college. First thing for me was to be an Under Armour All-American, and I did that, and it just went on along and everything built up from that point. I had basketball hopes but it was unlikely, and I saw what football could do for me.”

You played in a lot of big games. Will you be nervous?

“I’m going to be nervous but it’s a good type of nerves. If you ain’t nervous, speaking for myself, if I’m not nervous, something’s kind of wrong. At the end of the day, you’ve just got to go out and play football.”

Christian Watson, second-round draft pick

On growing up with dreams of the NFL.

“For me, I grew up around football. My dad played football, had a little stint in the league. My brother was a couple years older than me, kind of paving the way for me. For me, it’s really just been being the best ballplayer I can be at all times. My goal was just continue to grow. As I got older, things became more realistic for me. It’s just a blessing to be where I’m at.”

On what he anticipates Sunday being like.

“It’s going to be hectic. I know the Vikings have a crazy atmosphere over there. I think that’s only going to give us more energy, more juice. There’ll probably be a little bit of nerves. Shake those off at the beginning of the game and go out there and play. I’m excited to go out there, if I have the opportunity to go out there, and just play football.”

Romeo Doubs, fourth-round draft pick

On growing up with dreams of the NFL.

“Just growing up wanting to play this game, it came by faster than I thought. This is a dream coming true but, at the same time, this is more of a reality type of thing now. It’s taking your brain from living it into a dream to now having that amount of focus. It feels good to be in this position that I’m in. It’s just a grateful feeling.”