Aaron Rodgers is no stranger to receiving awards for his stellar play. The future Hall of Fame quarterback of the Green Bay Packers has already won four NFL MVP Awards, including each of the last two.
Additionally, Rodgers is a 10-time Pro Bowler, four-time All-Pro and Super Bowl MVP. In 2011, he was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year. The 2022 ESPY Awards will give him the chance to add to his hardware as he has been nominated for Best Athlete in Men’s Sports and Best NFL Player.
Fans can vote for Aaron Rodgers and other nominees
Rodgers is one of three nominees for Best Athlete in Male Sports. The other two nominees are Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry and Shoei Ohatani of the Los Angeles Angels. Fans can vote for the award here.
The other two nominees for Best NFL Player are Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt and running back Jonathan Taylor of the Indianapolis Colts. Interestingly, all three nominees have ties to Wisconsin. Rodgers, of course, plays for the Green Bay Packers. Both Watt and Taylor played their college ball at Wisconsin. Furthermore, Watt is from Pewaukee, WI. and was a standout at Pewaukee High School.
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Aaron Rodgers defied age to win his fourth MVP Award
There was a time when many thought that Aaron Rodgers’ football career was on the decline. Despite being named to the Pro Bowl in 2018 and 2019, Rodgers had a quarterback rating of 96.5. While this is typically good for most NFL quarterbacks, it was not for Rodgers.
The Green Bay Packers obviously believed that his career was on the decline when they traded up to select Jordan Love in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Whether it was the drafting of Love that fueled him or simply that he became more comfortable in head coach Matt LaFleur’s offense, Rodgers returned to MVP form in 2021 with arguably his second-best season ever.
Aaron Rodgers stats (2021): 69% completion, 4,115 yards, 37 TD, 4 INT, 111.9 QB rating
Rodgers came back in 2022 after an eventful offseason that saw him rumored to be done with Packers. However, the team and Rodgers came to an understanding and he returned for training camp. It was a good thing for the Packers that he did. It also included a record-breaking contract extension for the QB.
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Aaron Rodgers has won six previous ESPY Awards
The Green Bay Packers’ quarterback has won six previous ESPY Awards. In 2011, he won the BEST NFL Player ESPY. He won that same award in 2012, 2015 and 2017. Rodgers also won the ESPY Award for Best Play in 2016 and 2017. The 2016 Best Play was the 61-yard Hail Mary pass that Rodgers threw to then tight-end Richard Rodgers at the end of a regular-season game against the Detroit Lions.
In 2017, the winning play was Rodgers’ throw to the sidelines during the Packers’ NFC Divisional Round matchup against the Dallas Cowboys. Jared Cook caught the 35-yard pass as he fell out of bounds. The play set up a Mason Crosby field goal and gave the Packers a 34-31 victory.
When are the 2022 ESPY Awards?
The 2022 ESPY Awards will be held in Los Angeles on July 20 at 8:00 PM EST. Stephen Curry and other prominent athletes will be hosting the annual award show.
The ESPY Awards were first held in 1993 to benefit the V Foundation, which was started by Jimmy Valvano to support cancer research. During the first airing of the ESPY’s, Valvano was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award and announced the creation of the organization. He died 55 days later.
