Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will not play in Sunday’s marquee matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs after testing positive for COVID-19, sources told NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero on Wednesday.
Second-year pro Jordan Love is Green Bay’s only currently available quarterback since practice squad QB Kurt Benkert also was placed on the COVID-19 list after a positive test on Tuesday.
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Sources: #Packers QB Aaron Rodgers tested positive for COVID-19 and is out for Sunday’s game against the #Chiefs.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 3, 2021
Love is set to make his first career start Sunday after being selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Utah State. He’s 5-of-7 for 68 yards in his career.
Rodgers has not been vaccinated, NFL Media reported Wednesday, which means he has to miss a minimum of 10 days. If he were vaccinated, he would have had a chance to play Sunday.
The reigning MVP was asked about his vaccination status back in August, and he initially indicated that he had received the vaccine.
“Yeah, I’ve been immunized,” Rodgers said. “There’s guys on the team that haven’t been vaccinated, and it’s a personal decision. [I'm] not going to judge those guys.”
Rodgers has earned an 81.3 PFF grade through seven weeks, 15th among the 35 quarterbacks who have dropped back to pass at least 80 times. He's completed 173 of his 258 pass attempts for 1,894 yards, 17 touchdowns and three interceptions.
Aaron Rodgers: PFF passing stats in 2020 and 2021
| Metric | 2020 | 2021 |
| PFF passing grade | 94.3 | 79.4 |
| Yards per attempt | 8.2 | 7.3 |
| Average depth of target | 8.4 | 8.4 |
| Adj. Comp. % | 81.3% | 75.5% |
| Passer rating from a clean pocket | 129.7 | 123.4 |
| Passer rating under pressure | 89.3 | 45.8 |
| Big-time throw % | 7.7% | 5.5% |
| Turnover-worthy play % | 2.0% | 2.3% |
Click here to view Aaron Rodgers' career in PFF Premium Stats
COVID-19 has now dramatically impacted the Packers' outlook for the second straight week.
Star receiver Davante Adams ended up being worth about three points toward the spread in Week 8's Thursday Night Football matchup. Rodgers is worth the second-most spread points above replacement, per PFF's Power Rankings Tool.
Rogers' absence is devastating to the Packers' chances, as he is one of the three most valuable players in the NFL right now, according to PFF's Wins Above Replacement metric. The news should push the Packers past a touchdown underdog against the Chiefs on Sunday.
Backup quarterbacks have not only covered but won outright in recent weeks, and Jordan Love has shown some level of success in preseason action the past two years. However, the drop-off from Love to Rodgers is worth seven points toward the spread, and expecting him to go toe-to-toe with Patrick Mahomes on Sunday night still seems like way too big of a risk from a betting perspective.
For fantasy football, running back Aaron Jones could be in store for a big game, and A.J. Dillon could also be startable if Green Bay relies heavily on the running game. Adams is still a must-start, but his ceiling won't be as high. Only consider Jordan Love in Superflex leagues.
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