For seven long weeks, Aaron Rodgers stood helplessly on the Green Bay Packers sideline and watched as his team fell apart. Sure, his arm was in a sling. Then he grew a moustache.
The thoughts that must have run through his head while opposing defences abused three of his successors had to be dark. While the former Super Bowl MVP recovered from a broken collarbone, the Packers lost four of seven games.
But his return, last week, demonstrated how much one player can make a difference in this league.
After he was cleared to return in time for the final game of the regular season at Chicago Bears, he threw a season-saving touchdown pass in the final minute of what many thought would be the Packers’ final game of the season.
Instead, they left Soldier Field with a stunning 33-28 victory and now, despite a modest, 8-7-1 record, the Packers are in the NFL play-offs. Better yet, that 48-yard toss from Rodgers to Randall Cobb earned the Packers a division title and the home play-off game that goes with it, against the wild cards San Francisco 49ers.
“Aaron and Randall just made a phenomenal play,” said Mike McCarthy, the Green Bay coach.
“It’s two guys making a great, great play that’ll be running on the highlights now for the rest of my time on this Earth. What a great finish.”
The big finish may lead to more than one play-off game for the Packers. In the NFL, momentum counts for a lot in the post-season; often it matters little what a team’s record was during those first 16 games. A team that sneaked in but won dramatically in the final week often seems to perform better than the club with the impressive record but no must-win games for weeks.
Three of the past eight Super Bowl champions entered the play-offs as wild cards, an indication that getting to the play-offs is more important than how you did it. Playing well at the right time is a prerequisite for hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
The Packers will march onto the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field at least one more time and with their leader under centre. Rodgers stepping back onto the field could be just what this injury-riddled squad needs. Unfortunately, Rodgers’s counterpart also knows a little bit about momentum.
Colin Kaepernick led San Francisco to last year’s Super Bowl and enters the postseason on a six-game winning streak.
agray@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter at SprtNationalUAE
BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
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SPECS
Mini John Cooper Works Clubman and Mini John Cooper Works Countryman
Engine: two-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 306hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: JCW Clubman, Dh220,500; JCW Countryman, Dh225,500
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Countdown to Zero exhibition will show how disease can be beaten
Countdown to Zero: Defeating Disease, an international multimedia exhibition created by the American Museum of National History in collaboration with The Carter Center, will open in Abu Dhabi a month before Reaching the Last Mile.
Opening on October 15 and running until November 15, the free exhibition opens at The Galleria mall on Al Maryah Island, and has already been seen at the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum in Atlanta, the American Museum of Natural History in New York, and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
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If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
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Eyasses squad
Charlie Preston (captain) – goal shooter/ goalkeeper (Dubai College)
Arushi Holt (vice-captain) – wing defence / centre (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Olivia Petricola (vice-captain) – centre / wing attack (Dubai English Speaking College)
Isabel Affley – goalkeeper / goal defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Jemma Eley – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Alana Farrell-Morton – centre / wing / defence / wing attack (Nord Anglia International School)
Molly Fuller – goal attack / wing attack (Dubai College)
Caitlin Gowdy – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai English Speaking College)
Noorulain Hussain – goal defence / wing defence (Dubai College)
Zahra Hussain-Gillani – goal defence / goalkeeper (British School Al Khubairat)
Claire Janssen – goal shooter / goal attack (Jumeriah English Speaking School)
Eliza Petricola – wing attack / centre (Dubai English Speaking College)
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
if you go
The flights
Flydubai flies to Podgorica or nearby Tivat via Sarajevo from Dh2,155 return including taxes. Turkish Airlines flies from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Podgorica via Istanbul; alternatively, fly with Flydubai from Dubai to Belgrade and take a short flight with Montenegro Air to Podgorica. Etihad flies from Abu Dhabi to Podgorica via Belgrade. Flights cost from about Dh3,000 return including taxes. There are buses from Podgorica to Plav.
The tour
While you can apply for a permit for the route yourself, it’s best to travel with an agency that will arrange it for you. These include Zbulo in Albania (www.zbulo.org) or Zalaz in Montenegro (www.zalaz.me).