During the broadcast, FOX Sports’ Troy Aikman said to Joe Buck, “It’s harder to win the Championship round than it is in the Super Bowl. These teams know each other better than whoever you’re playing in the Super Bowl.” I thought about that a lot as I’m watching the Green Bay trail to Tampa Bay for a majority of the game. So many of these situations featured Green Bay as an underdog, but this was different. It felt different. Unlike anything else, Packers have dealt with in the Rodgers’ era yet it all was the same. The Packers fell short again. Why can’t they get over this hump? Who knows. It’s never easy, but this one hurts. Let’s review the game for one of the last times with star ratings.

FIVE STARS
Aaron Rodgers – This is a great game from the MVP. We will not look back at this game and say ‘Rodgers cost the Packers.’ He had many great moments in this game. Rodgers went off for 346 yards, three touchdowns, and a quarterback rating of 101.6. Rodgers did what he could in this game. For the first time in a long time, Green Bay tried to rely on Rodgers and not the running attack at all. That is something we haven’t seen in a while. He probably tried too hard.

FOUR STARS
Kenny Clark – What a stud Kenny Clark is. Remember Ryan Jensen, the center for Tampa Bay, was the scumbag that twisted Clark’s ankle back in 2017. Clark played as a man possessed out there. He had eight tackles, one sack, one TFL and found his way in the backfield all day long. They could not hang with Clark. It was awesome to see him get in the backfield on a regular basis. If the rest of the front seven played like Clark, they might have won this game.

THREE STARS
Allen Lazard – There were a couple of great plays from Allen Lazard in this game. He had three catches for 62 yards, but man, the opportunity was there for him to have so much better of a game. Lazard missed a pick on the goal line, and if he does that Davante Adams probably has a touchdown. He also was missed by Rodgers on a goal-line play or two. The future is bright for the Lizard King.

TWO STARS
Aaron Jones – Man, what a tough last game for Jones. Yes, you heard that right. Jones had a couple of moments, but this is a bad game for him. What I don’t get about Jones’ performance is he knew what Jerome Whitehead wanted to do on the football field. He went after the football in the first half with his helmet. Jones has to know that and protect the football. He is usually so good in that spot, but Whitehead was ball-hunting, Jones needed to be prepared.

ONE STAR
Kevin King – I worried about Kevin King’s ability to handle Tampa’s corners, and it definitely was a major issue. King allowed two touchdowns. Why Mike Pettine didn’t realize that King was a major issue after the first drive is beyond me. He had Tramon Williams there, who probably doesn’t have enough in the tank, but Williams could have helped out a little bit more. Or move Chandon Sullivan to the outside, but he was a disaster too. Packers need someone that can match what Jaire Alexander does