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Rodgers tough to pick off, easy to sack

Posted Nov 2, 2009 by Ira Kaufman

Updated Nov 2, 2009 at 12:48 PM

By IRA KAUFMAN
TAMPA—Tampa Bay’s spotty pass rush is on the spot this week.

When the winless Bucs meet the Packers Sunday at Raymond James Stadium, defensive coordinator Jim Bates will have had almost two weeks to devise a plan to hound Green Bay QB Aaron Rodgers.

Other opponents have found it easy to get to Rodgers, with the Packers allowing an NFL-high 31 sacks.

But when Rodgers has time to survey the field, he can inflict a lot of damage. He is the top-rated passer in the league (110.4) and Brett Favre’s replacement has fired 14 TD passes, compared to only two interceptions.

Rodgers has been particularly effective on third down, again leading all NFL passers with a 141.1 rating. On the money down, Rodgers has thrown eight TD passes without a pick.

Green Bay has committed an NFL-low five giveaways, tying the Eagles for the league’s top turnover ratio at plus-12. That’s a big reason why Green Bay is a 10-point favorite on the road against the Bucs, the NFL’s only winless club.

Tampa Bay ranks 28th on offense and 29th on defense as rookie QB Josh Freeman approaches his first pro start. The Bucs have dropped 11 consecutive games since starting the 2008 season 9-3 and harboring hopes of playing in their home stadium in the Super Bowl.

Now, they just want to prove they can win a game for first-year coach Raheem Morris.

First down has been a huge problem for the Bucs all season. They rank 31st on both offense (4.32) and defense (6.67) in average yards on first down.