“Aaron absolutely took the high road. He's managed through a tough situation in a really gracious, awesome way. There are things that he went through that no one knows about. Just do your job. Play football. And the benefits are great when you just hang tough." (Steve Young)
The 2009 season started with Rodgers’ first come-from-behind win, against the Bears on Sep. 13. With 1:11 minutes left to play, Rodgers completed a 50-yard pass to receiver Greg Jennings followed by another pass to Jennings for the 2-point conversion, giving the Packers the win, 21-15.
Rodgers was named NFC Offensive Player of the Month for October. Midway through the season the Packers were just 4-4, at which point Rodgers led the charge to a 7-1 record to finish out the season. Their 11-5 overall record qualified them to a wild card playoff spot, and they lost in the first round to the Cardinals. Rodgers was also voted to his first Pro Bowl and started for the NFC Team.
Rodgers showed his durability by again starting every game for the Packers, including pre and postseason games. His season totals: 350 of 541 passes completed for 4,434 yards, 30 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, 50 sacks. He rushed for 316 yards with an average of 5.4 yards/carry, 5 touchdowns, and 10 fumbles. His passer rating of 103.2 ranked him second place among quarterbacks for the season, and second highest in Green Bay history.
He was the first starting quarterback in NFL history to throw at least 4,000 yards in his first two seasons. Also, he became the first quarterback to score at least 30 passing touchdowns and five rushing touchdowns, and throw fewer than eight interceptions in one season. His 4,434 passing yardage was the second in Green Bay history to Lynn Dickey (4,458 passing yards) . Against Cleveland on Oct. 25, Rodgers earned a 155.4 passer rating, the highest single-game rating for a Green Bay quarterback.
Perhaps most importantly, Rodgers was winning the hearts and souls of the Packer fans. At preseason camp the previous summer, Rodgers had to endure signs and chants calling for Favre’s return. As Rodgers and the Packers improved, so did the mood of the loyal and enthusiastic fanbase.