After spending his first 3 seasons sitting in the shadow of Brett Favre, Rodgers, in some eyes, has finally stepped out of that shadow by throwing for 304 and 3 TDs as the Green Bay Packers won their 4th Super Bowl in franchise history and 13th NFL championship, defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers, 31-25. Rodgers, MVP of Super Bowl XLV, first hit Jordy Nelson in the 1st quarter to give the Packers a 7-0 lead. Then just 24 seconds later, Nick Collins picked off a Ben Roethlisberger pass and returned it 37 yards for another Green Bay touchdown and a 14-0 lead.
Pittsburgh finally got on the scoreboard 3:52 into the 2nd quarter on a Shaun Suisham 33-yard field goal. Then just before the 2-minute warning, Rodgers hit Greg Jennings for the first of his two touchdown grabs on the night, a 21-yard strike, giving the Packers a 21-3 lead. Big Ben would lead a late drive culminating in an 8-yard touchdown pass to one of the greatest Steeler wide receivers ever, Hines Ward, who may or may not have just played his final game. The Packers went into the locker room with a 21-10 halftime lead.
After the Black Eyed Peas performed, both teams came out for the second half, and after a quick stop on defense by the Steelers, Pittsburgh ran the ball down Green Bay's throat the very next drive, with Rashard Mendenhall capping off the drive with an 8-yard touchdown run.
The rest of the 3rd quarter went scoreless, making it 21-17 going into the final 15 minutes of the 2010 NFL season. Three minutes into the fourth, Rodgers and Jennings hooked up for the second time, this time from eight yards out, to give Green Bay a 28-17 lead. Pittsburgh again made it a one-possession game when Mike Wallace scored from 25 yards out on a Roethlisberger pass. After Antwaan Randle El ran it in for the two-point conversion, the deficit was cut to three, 28-25. A huge drive for Green Bay, including a key 3rd-down pass to Nelson, was capped by a 23-yard Mason Crosby field goal, giving the Packers a 31-25 lead with 2:07 to play. After Roethlisberger's 4th-down pass attempt to Wallace fell incomplete, and the Packers took over on downs, it was time to celebrate. A couple of knee-downs later, and the Packers claimed their first Super Bowl since winning Super Bowl XXXI.
With this win, Green Bay now owns the 2nd-best win percentage in Super Bowls, as they are now 4-1, and Pittsburgh falls to 6-2. San Francisco still remains the best at a perfect 5-0 in Super Bowls.
But now with Super Bowl XLV in the books, the question now arises, was this the last NFL game we see for awhile? The current Collective Bargaining Agreement is set to expire on March 3, but the NFL is confident that a new deal will be reached and that there will be a 2011 season.
As for now, let the celebration in Lambeau commence. The Vince Lombardi Trophy is back home in Green Bay.
