Saints' Win Sets Up Jared Goff-Aaron Rodgers Ex-Cal QB Matchup

Because the Saints beat the Bears 21-9 on Sunday, the Packers will host the Rams next Saturday, and former Cal quarterbacks Jared Goff and Aaron Rodgers will oppose each other for the second time in their careers.

Well, maybe.

With Jared Goff having another week to recover from Dec. 28 thumb surgery and Saturday starter John Wolford hospitalized briefly for a neck injury, you might assume Goff will get the start against the Packers on Saturday afternoon.

However, Rams coach Sean McVay made no such commitment after Saturday’s game, leaving the question of the Rams’ starting quarterback open for at least a few more days.

"I’m pleased with what Jared did today, but John was getting into a rhythm. I thought he was seeing the field really well," said McVay, not sounding like a solid Goff supporter.

Both Goff and Wolford will be healthy enough to play, according to a Twitter report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter:

After spending Saturday afternoon at the hospital, Rams’ QB John Wolford returned to LA last night with the team, per source. Both Rams’ QBs, Wolford (neck) and Jared Goff (thumb) are banged up, but in words of one source both “should be OK.”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 10, 2021

But let’s assume for now that Goff will be the starter next week, giving us this all-Cal quarterback matchup for the second time. Before addressing their first meeting, we provide a little background:

Who was the better quarterback at Cal – Goff or Rodgers?

Both Northern California products – Goff from Novato, Rodgers from Chico -- were first-team all-conference picks in their final seasons at Cal, with Goff racking up more records for an 8-5 Cal team in 2015, but Rodgers finishing ninth in the 2004 Heisman Trophy voting after the Bears finished ranked No. 9 in the nation.

There is less debate about which one has been better in the pros.

Both were first-round NFL draft picks. However, Goff, the son of two Cal alumni and a frequent spectator at Cal home games growing up, was disappointed as a 10-year-old when his favorite team, the 49ers, took Alex Smith instead of Rodgers with the No. 1 pick of the 2005 draft.

Goff went No. 1 overall in 2016 and Rodgers was not taken until the No. 24 selection nine years earlier, which is a story in itself, as noted in this video:

Goff became an NFL starter 10 games into his rookie season, and Rodgers did not become a starter until his fourth NFL season. (Goff did not have Brett Favre playing in front of him.)

And when they met two years ago, they were in a much different situation than they are now.

Goff was in his third NFL season and looking like an MVP candidate just two weeks past his 24th birthday as he outplayed Rodgers, who was a 35-year-old veteran whose career seemed to be on the decline in the Rams’ 29-27 victory over the Packers on Oct. 28, 2018.

Goff threw three touchdown passes in that game and Rodgers had just one as the Rams improved to 8-0 in a season that ended with a Super Bowl berth. Meanwhile, the Packers slipped to 3-3-1 on their way to a 6-9-1 finish that made folks wonder whether Rodgers’ career was reaching an end following an injury-plagued season.

Now, two seasons later, Rodgers seems to be a shoo-in to win his third MVP, while Goff is in danger of losing his starting job to a quarterback who has played just two NFL games in his career.

Cover photo of Jared Goff during 2018 game against the Packers is by Jake Roth, USA TODAY Sports

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