I will never
forget the day Brett Favre retired.

Though I’m from
Los Angeles and I didn’t feel any personal anguish, the impact on the UW campus
was unbelievable. All my friends couldn’t bear to watch ESPN — they sulked for what
seemed like weeks before finally starting to accept that their man wasn’t
coming back.

Their Hall of
Fame quarterback was gone for good, and that meant the team would be left with
Aaron Rodgers, who hadn’t started a game since his collegiate days.

Green Bay fans
were naturally upset. The most prolific player in Packers history left, and
they were left with a kid who never started a game in the NFL? Yeah, if I were
a Packers fan, I’d be pretty upset too.

But after a 2-0
start, over 500 passing yards and a quarterback rating near 117.8, it seems
like those fans calling for head coach Mike McCarthy and general manager Ted
Thompson’s heads will finally keep their mouths shut.

Favre has
performed relatively well — he has 375 passing yards and three touchdowns
through two games. But for now, it seems like Rodgers is coming into his own as
the Packers’ new leader, and few in Green Bay seems to care about Favre’s
performance in New York.

In his first
start as a Packer, Rodgers didn’t disappoint, passing for 178 yards and a
touchdown. He again showed off his arm against Detroit on Sunday, passing for
328 yards and three scores. Not bad for his first two games as a starter in
possibly the biggest football town in the country.

Sure, Favre may
be on the radar in New York. But right now, Rodgers is showing Green Bay that
he’s ready to take over the show, even if a large portion of the fans in his
home stadium still wears their No. 4 jerseys.

But what’s
really interesting is the way Rodgers accepted his role and has outperformed
his predecessor. Through all of the summer turmoil and confusion regarding
Favre, Rodgers sat back and did whatever he was told.

Look at him now,
on top of the division and being embraced by all of Green Bay.

Now, with an
early division lead, the Rodgers-led Packers — who simply wanted to resolve the
issue with Favre — are now sitting back, loving what they are seeing.

How could they
not be happy?

Nobody expected
Rodgers to be better than Favre, and chances are he won’t be. At least for now,
though, Rodgers is giving Packers fans a reason to get excited.

He has a higher
passer rating, more touchdowns, more passing yards and a higher completion
percentage than Favre — more importantly though, he has led the Packers to two
strong victories.

That’s not to
say that Favre won’t be forgotten. He did more for the Packers organization
than anyone else in history. Instead, think of Rodgers as a consolation prize
that will give Green Bay something to cheer for.

McCarthy and
Thompson may have handled Favre’s situation poorly over the summer, but it
seems like Packer fans ready to run the two out of town will forgive their
general manager and head coach for letting him get away.

Rodgers faces
another major challenge this coming Sunday against the Cowboys. He will be on
national television and might even get his first loss as Green Bay’s starter.
But that shouldn’t discourage Packers fans — he will only continue to get
better.

Be happy, Packer
fans. I don’t want my last memory of Wisconsin to be sad faces with little hope
for the future. If the first two games of the 2008 season are any indication,
Green Bay has a lot to be excited about for a very long time.

I bet nobody saw
that one coming.

Jonah is a
sophomore hoping to major in journalism. He saw Brett Favre tear apart the
Lions last year and saw Aaron Rodgers do the same in 2008. Still think Favre is
the man in Green Bay? Jonah can be reached at [email protected].