NFL Week 9 Sunday Night Battle - Rodgers vs. Brady

NFL WEEK 9 SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL BETTING Green Bay Packers at New England Patriots Sunday, November 4^th – Gillette Stadium – 8:20pm ET Odds: Patriots -5.5 (56.5)

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Any NFL fans who wonder why teams put so much emphasis on the quarterback position should turn their televisions to NBC on Sunday night. Two of the greatest quarterbacks in the history of the NFL duel at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts.

Green Bay and the great Aaron Rodgers head to New England to throw down against Mr. GOAT Tom Brady and the mighty Patriots. A battle between two of the best quarterbacks to ever step onto a football field would make news no matter what, but in this case, Sunday’s battle is important for both teams.

As to be expected, New England’s running away with the NFC East. But, they’re a game behind Kansas City and only a half-game ahead of Pittsburgh for home field advantage in the AFC. Green Bay’s situation is more dire. The Packers are 3-3-1 SU after 7 games. Every game from now until the end of the regular season is a must win for Rodgers and his crew.

Who takes it in the best quarterback duel of the season?

Rodgers vs Brady Highlights NFL Week 9 Sunday Night Matchup

Most look to football things, like stats, coaches, etc., to explain why Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady are so good at what they do. To those individuals, football can be boiled down to its simplest form: move the ball 10 yards, get a fresh set of downs to move the ball 10 more yards, and keep moving the ball until you put it over the goal line. The team with the better defense based on stats, the better offensive line, the smarter coaches, and the better cleats on rainy days win the games.

Any real football fan knows that’s too simplistic. Football’s different than sports like basketball and baseball because you can’t boil it down to mere stats. It doesn’t mean basketball players and baseball players don’t have heart. It does mean that heart can take you further in football than in other sports.

Aaron Rodgers is a great example of that. The Packers chose Rodgers with the 24^th pick in Round 1 of the 2005 NFL Draft even though every scout and football fan on the planet had seen how well he played while crouching under center for the California Golden Bears. Those teams passed on Rodgers for the most obscure reason imaginable - his hands are smaller than those of the average NFL quarterback.

Rodgers, because his heart’s three times the size of the average NFL quarterback, has proven everyone wrong since.

Tom Brady’s desire is also unquestionable. At least Green Bay took a shot on the best quarterback in the 2005 NFL Draft. Nobody, including the Patriots, gave Brady a chance until Round 6 back in 2000. Even then, Brady only made the team because Bill Belichick didn’t want to spend too many dollars on a top flight back-up and felt he had a franchise guy to lean on in the form of Drew Bledsoe.

One of the great "what if's" in sports is Drew Bledsoe's injury paving the way for Terrific Tom Brady's emergence. We all know how this story goes: the 2001 Super Bowl was supposed to be the creation of the St. Louis Rams' dynasty. Instead, Brady led an incredible upset and the Patriots reigned supreme and have never let up this century.

Shows you not only what quarterbacks mean to their teams, but how a quarterback with heart and work ethic like Tom Brady can totally change things if he just gets a shot.

Green Bay Traded Safety Clinton-Dix

The Green Bay Packers made a very bizarre move by trading Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to Washington for a fourth round pick. Maybe they think that they can sustain the 5th best passing defense with out him, but it's a move that is highly unusual given that the Packers are perennially in win-now mode. Not only did they trade Clinton-Dix, they also traded away running back Ty Montgomery.

Sure, it’s Montgomery’s fault that Green Bay lost to the Rams in Week 8, but why are you downgrading your team on both sides of the ball? Aaron Jones is an injury prone player, and Jamaal Williams is average at best. It feels like Green Bay’s given up on the season, which makes no sense unless they’ve got a plan for their 34-year-old quarterback that doesn’t involve him playing in a different uniform next season. Rodgers would be a welcome addition on any team, but he's not going anywhere after signing a big contract extension with the Packers this past summer. It's just hard to justify moving Clinton-Dix, especially with Brady on the horizon in prime time.

Rodgers has to question Green Bay’s front office’s intentions. Without Clinton-Dix, Brady’s going to have a lark throwing the football all over the field on Sunday night. Ha Ha was a huge gap filler for the secondary and a hard run stuffer as well. It doesn’t help that the Pats are 13-3 ATS in their last 16 versus a team with a losing record, or that Green Bay is 1-4 ATS in their last 5 on the road.

Rodgers will give it his all, but it won’t be enough. Terrific Tom and New England will dominate the Packers on Sunday night.

Week 9 Sunday Night Football Betting Free Pick:  Patriots -5.5