With Tom Brady retiring at 44 years old and Ben Roethlisberger at 39 years old, it left me wondering who the oldest quarterback and players are still left playing in the NFL. Is it Aaron Rodgers? No, the answer is 40-year-old Andrew Whitworth, an offensive tackle with the Los Angeles Rams. There is no word on his future after the Super Bowl, but he is still playing and is the oldest player in the NFL.
Here is an interesting fact about Andrew Whitworth and this year’s Super Bowl. He was drafted in 2006 by the Cincinnati Bengals, and he played there till he signed with the Los Angeles Rams 2017. I am sure he is happy to face his former team this year in the big game.
If Whitworth retires after the Super Bowl, you would think that Aaron Rodgers would be the oldest player left standing in the NFL or maybe even a kicker, you would be wrong. The senior athlete in the league in that case is Jason Peters, 40 years old. Jason is an offensive lineman that has gotten better with age, he was an un-drafted player that is now a desired commodity. Peters currently plays for the Chicago Bears; he came into the league as a tight end with the Buffalo Bills in 2004.
The next oldest is Washington Commanders quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, he is 39 years old and still plays a valuable role for his team and in the league as a backup quarterback. Fitzpatrick is a smart quarterback that played his college ball in Harvard Yard, where he was the Ivy League’s schools first quarterback to rush for over a thousand yards. He was drafted in 2005 by the then St. Louis Rams.
This must be the part of the story where I start talking about Aaron Rodgers. I keep mentioning him, so it must be now that we discuss him and his contributions to the game. Nope, we will mention the last player older than him still playing, that player is Dustin Colquitt the punter for the Cleveland Browns. Colquitt was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in 2005 and even won a Super Bowl with them. He was then released by the Chief’s and played for three different teams in 2020, before re-signing for a second go-round in Kansas City in 2021. Another aging player that has proved that age is just a number.
Just for the record there have been quite a few players to play into their forties, but none had as much production on the field as TB12, Tom Brady. Georga Blanda played till he was 48 years old; he started as a quarterback and finished his career as a kicker. The next few oldest players were also kickers and played to almost 50 years old; Adam Vinatieri and Morton Anderson played till 47 years old and John Carney till he was 46 years old.
There is one guy, some call a bad man, entering free agency and seems to be only getting better with time. This guy was the NFL’s MVP last season and is amongst the talks to repeat for the award this season. He also wears number 12 on his chest.
Aaron Rodgers is that bad man.
Just a quick look at his stats this season and you know he is not slowing down at the age of 38. Rodgers had a completion rate near 70 percent (68.9 percent), over 4,100 yards (4,115 yards), 37 touchdowns and only four interceptions. Aaron and the Packers ended the season 13-4, leaving the team in a build back better stage, which always sounds like something someone does not want to be involved in. Rodgers stated after the season he was not going to stick around for a rebuilding stage.
There are quite a few quarterback spots open now in the NFL. Even if a team is not currently in the market for a quarterback, most would try to lock down the future hall of famer. The only teams not really in the market for a quarterback are the teams that made it deep into the playoffs this season. Josh Allen in Buffalo, Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City, Matt Stafford with the Rams, and Joe Burrow playing in Cincinatti (who are both playing in this year’s Super Bowl).
With career numbers like Aaron Rodgers has — over 65 percent pass completion rate with 55,360 yards and 449 touchdowns — Rodgers is sure to end up on a team that is just one player away for a title. He has recently bought land in Tennessee to build a home and hunt on, bringing speculation that Aaron Rodgers could end up with the Titans. There is also a rumor he would like to play in Denver with their new head coach Nate Hitchcock, who was the offensive coordinator for Green Bay when Rodgers won his MVP. Coach Hitchcock has also hired two former offensive coaches from Green Bay, Justin Outen and Butch Barry. I would say that Denver is paving the way for an easy transition for Rodgers if he plans to sign with the Broncos.
No matter how old you are getting do not forget that your knowledge and experience is more valuable than someone just young with blind ambition. If you do not like where you are in your life, take a baby step to change it. Throw a pebble and create a ripple effect that will make you grow. You never know how much your experience is worth till you let someone new evaluate your accomplishments. Never question that you are worth, what you think you are worth. Take that baby step forward and see how much more you can still accomplish. I will be the first one to tell you that you can do it!
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