Aaron Rodgers injury: Pros and cons of Packers resting Rodgers

Aaron Rodgers has made it clear that he has no intention of missing time due to his toe injury.

However, Rodgers believes he suffered a setback in the Green Bay Packers‘ win over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

With playoffs almost guaranteed, the Packers need to weigh up the pros and cons of giving Rodgers some time off to heal his injury, whether Rodgers wants to or not. Let’s take a look at each scenario.

Pros of Packers resting Aaron Rodgers

Of course, giving Rodgers time off would be far from ideal for anyone. However, if they were confident a few weeks and potentially surgery could have Rodgers at 100 percent (or close) by the playoffs, would it be the right move?

While it could cost the Packers in the short term and mean they miss the NFC’s top seed, they are almost guaranteed the NFC North title which would give them a home playoff game.

Even if the Packers get the top seed with an injured Rodgers, would that be better than a fully-healthy Rodgers with Green Bay playing a road game or two in January?

The biggest (and perhaps) only reason for doing this would be if Rodgers had a high chance of being 100 percent in time for the playoffs.

Cons of Packers resting Aaron Rodgers

There are plenty of reasons against it. After all, if Rodgers feels he can play well, why shouldn’t he be out there?

If the Packers are able to win-out and secure home-field advantage, they would get another bye week and have the NFC run through Lambeau Field. That’s huge.

If Rodgers is given time off to recover, we can forget about the top seed. The Packers would need to go on the road at some stage, likely in the divisional round after hosting a wild-card game.

Also, the longer Rodgers misses, the less time he has out on the field taking reps. Even playing through injury, he’s in the zone and in-rhythm at the moment. Say he misses three weeks. That’s a long time to go without any reps.

What should the Packers do?

It’s a question the Packers do need to weigh up in the coming weeks.

If Rodgers continues to play, what if the injury gets worse? There’s no guarantee they will earn the top seed anyway, but what if Rodgers continuing to play means he’s limited in the playoffs?

On the flip side, there’s also no guarantee time off means he’ll be at 100 percent by January. Plus, the Packers would potentially make their playoff run tougher by having to play at least one, but likely two road games to reach the Super Bowl. Not to mention Rodgers could be rusty when he returns.

I think it comes down to Aaron Rodgers. If he feels comfortable enough to play and not be too limited, he should be out there. Missing time should be a last resort and only if the injury is impacting his ability to play to his best.

What are your thoughts?