Aaron Rodgers' Packers face a San Francisco team he grew up rooting for as a Northern Californian with a Super Bowl trip on the line Sunday in Santa Clara.
Beating his former favorite team would put Rodgers into his second Super Bowl appearance. It's not exactly the scenario the Cal grad used to dream about growing up, but he'll take it.
"I usually dreamed about playing for the 49ers as a kid," Rodgers said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. "Obviously, that thing passed a long time ago. But I do remember some great games over the years between the 49ers and the Packers, including [one] in this situation."
The "passed a long time ago" comment harkens back to when the 49ers eschewed Rodgers in the draft to select Alex Smith, No. 1 overall, leaving Rodgers to drop to Green Bay.
His response underscores that while Rodgers has moved on, he'll never forget that slight or remove that particular chip from his shoulder. Still, things have worked out solidly for Rodgers, who has become one of the greatest QBs in NFL history in Green Bay.
Rodgers faced the team of his youth earlier this season and got walloped 37-8. Looking back at that bout, the QB said he hoped he'd have a chance at redemption.
"You realize, playing against them, how good they are," Rodgers said. "At the time, they had a two-game lead plus the tiebreaker. Just calculating things in my head, I figured that if we made a run, we'd probably have to beat them at their place at some point. And, sure enough, we're back there, needing a win to get to the Super Bowl."
Facing one of the best defenses in the NFL, Rodgers will need to spin magic Sunday if his Packers are going to be playing in Miami in two weeks.
