Moving On

Last night's game goes to prove the old adage, "the best revenge is living well." Green Bay's breakup with their former quarterback was a long and messy affair but Aaron Rodgers has proved himself to be more than just "the rebound" while Brett Favre has become the cliched post-breakup ex-lover whose life spirals into a pathetic, depressing mess. Though they broke your heart, you take no pleasure in their troubles. You just wish they'd go away.

Rodger's performance last night, aided by some talented receivers, a surprisingly effective running game and (at last!) a fearsome defense, has been called already one of the best by a quarterback in NFL playoff history. I'm usually prone to flipping channels when a game is either not going my way or if the score becomes lopsided. Last night, I watched every single second, texting score updates to Suzanne who was out with friends. I couldn't take my eyes off it.

I can proudly say I was one of the few Packer fans who, after Brett "retired" the first time, was excited that Rodgers would get to step up. I'd seen him play during one of the few times Favre didn't finish a game. I felt like we had another good quarterback on our hands. Then Favre started his crap and I got angry. I just knew Rodgers would get fed up and go to a team that was willing to let him start. When other fans were crying for coach Mike McCarthy's head for telling Favre to at last hit the road, I was shouting, "YES!" from the rooftops. Like Troy Aikman last night, I think McCarthy should get Coach of the Year. Hell, I think he should get Coach of the Decade for having the foresight to give Favre and his inflated ego the boot.

And don't get me started on the ProBowl snub of Rodgers in favor of convicted dogfighter (Oh, that sounds too nice. How about we call him Purveyor of Animal Cruelty? Or maybe Man's Best Friend's Worst Friend?) Michael Vick. For some reason, whenever the misdeeds of Vick or Favre are brought up, 99% of sports announcers put their hands over their ears and start calling "LA! LA! LA! LA!" Seems like most of the fans and players are too, since that's who does the ProBowl voting. Two weeks ago, some were calling for Vick to be named League MVP. Outrageous. I think we saw the MVP last night, busying himself with picking apart the number-one seed Atlanta Falcons.