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Rodgers Made Big-Time Throws, Avoided Big-Time Mistakes

Take a deeper look at Aaron Rodgers' MVP season and overall greatness.
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GREEN BAY, Wis. – Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers built his legend with his uncanny ability to make big plays while avoiding big mistakes.

That was in full effect as he won his third NFL MVP this season. Rodgers became just the second quarterback in the last 80 years – Steve Young was the other – to lead the NFL in completion percentage, touchdown percentage and interception percentage.

Pro Football Focus, in its subscribers-only Quarterback Annual, lends some additional analytics that go deeper than mere touchdowns vs. interceptions.

On Page 4, it charts every NFL starter in big-time throws vs. turnover-worthy plays.

As described by PFF: “Big-time throws create big plays while turnover-worthy plays result in turnovers about half the time. The top right is the best place to be where BTTs are high and TWPs are limited. The more volatile players reside in the bottom right as players with high BTTs and high TWPs while the top left is the more conservative quadrant of low BTTs and low TWPs.”

Rodgers is stationed in the upper-right-hand corner of the chart.

Individually, Rodgers was No. 1 in big-time throw percentage and No. 4 in turnover-worthy play percentage.

Including the two playoff games, Rodgers threw 53 touchdowns vs. six interceptions. Rodgers’ big-time throw percentage was 7.7, by far his best since PFF began tracking that in 2013. His previous best was 6.5 percent in 2014, when he won his second MVP. His turnover-worthy play rate was 2.3 percent, slightly better than his average season.

Rodgers is No. 7 in NFL history with a touchdown rate of 6.3 percent (and behind only Patrick Mahomes’ 6.8 percent among quarterbacks whose careers were played entirely in the Super Bowl era). He is No. 1 in interception rate by a razor-thin margin, with Rodgers at 1.35 percent and Mahomes at 1.42 percent.

This season, Rodgers became the fastest quarterback to 400 career touchdown passes. He did it in regular-season game No. 193, 12 fewer than Drew Brees. With 412 touchdowns vs. 89 interceptions, he’s got a lofty goal.

“I am proud, obviously, of the 400th,” he said after hitting that milestone vs. Philadelphia. “I’m glad I got the ball. I’m going to hold onto that one. Now, I’m going to see if I can get to 500 before I throw 100 picks.”

That won’t be easy, even for Rodgers. His career mark is 4.63 touchdowns for every interception. He’d have to be hit 8.8 touchdowns per interception to throw 500 touchdowns before his 100th interception.

Rodgers is No. 2 all-time in touchdown-to-interception percentage. The video shows the top 10.