Packers teammate compares Aaron Rodgers to Michael Jordan in his prime

There is a whole generation of sports fans who never got the chance to see Michael Jordan play basketball. That’s a shame. (And the kind of thing that makes certain people feel old, for what it’s worth.)

Our suggestion for displacement for that particular demographic: Soak up as much Aaron Rodgers as you can.

Following Monday night’s aerial assault by Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers, despite losing a few offensive starters, backup quarterback Scott Tolzien went there. He invoked His Airness when talking about Rodgers’ game, even though — according to ESPN Milwaukee’s Jason Wilde — Tolzien made sure that the nearby Rodgers was not within earshot.

“I mean, to me,” Tolzien said, “it’s like watching Jordan in his prime. He’s at the top of his game. He makes it all go.”

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Beyond his raw passing numbers — completing 24-of-35 passes for 333 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions and a passer rating of 138.5, for those of you who are into such things — Rodgers seemed to toy with the Kansas City Chiefs by escaping their dangerous pass rush continually, twice catching them with 12 men on defense, using a hard cadence to get them to jump offsides and earn free plays and picking on fresh-meat defensive backs just entering the game.

Michael Jordan dunks against the Sacramento Kings on November 23, 1997 at Arco Arena (Photo by Rocky Widner/NBAE via Getty Images) This is where the physical meets the cerebral, and maybe also the celestial, at the highest of levels. Even with a few throws he got away with Monday night, Rodgers was on a rare level.

Asked about Jordan, Rodgers said he saw MJ live once when he was an eighth grader (10 days before his 14th birthday) in his final season with the Chicago Bulls.

“I think something inside him felt he wanted to put on a show every time he went out, because there was somebody in the stadium that hadn’t seen him play before,” Rodgers said. “The last game that he played in Sacramento, I was in the top row, and it was kind of a late-addition ticket.

“He scored 33 points that night, and I was new to watching him live. I’d loved watching him on TV, but it was fun to watch him live. He always brought his A-game every night.”

The Packers are 3-0 and looking unbeatable at Lambeau Field. Rodgers now has completed 67-of-91 passes this season (73.6 percent) for 771 yards with 10 touchdowns, zero interceptions and a passer rating of 135.4. On the Packers’ five TD drives last night, Rodgers completed 14 of 16 for 206 yards.

Jordanesque. That killer instinct was on display Monday night. Is this comparison taking it too far? We don’t think it is. Do you?

If there’s anyone who can appreciate a good football-basketball crossover comparison, it’s Packers pass rusher Julius Peppers, who played both sports in college at North Carolina, where Jordan is a legend.

Peppers certainly doesn’t take Rodgers’ weekly greatness for granted.

“I don’t. Trust me, I don’t,” Peppers said. “I played on some teams where I wished I had a guy like him. I think the fans here, I think everybody takes it for granted.