NFC North

Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams are now the most productive touchdown duo in Green Bay Packers history, surpassing Rodgers' longtime partnership with former Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson. 

The two accomplished the feat when Rodgers hit Adams for a nine-yard score in the second quarter of Saturday's game against the Cleveland Browns to put the Packers up 14-6. 

Rodgers and Adams have played together since 2014. In 105 games, Adams has caught 595 passes from Rodgers for 7,285 yards and 66 touchdowns on 903 targets. 

Nelson caught 483 passes from the reigning MVP for 7,069 yards and 65 scores on 727 targets in 119 games from 2008 to 2017. He and Rodgers won a Super Bowl together in 2011.

Rodgers is playing at an MVP level once again this season. He entered Saturday's game completing 67.8 percent of his passes for 3,487 yards and 30 touchdowns against four interceptions. 

Adams is also in the midst of another impressive campaign, entering Saturday leading the Packers with 96 catches for 1,248 yards (third in NFL) and eight touchdowns in 13 games. 

Rodgers also overtook Brett Favre's record for the most touchdown passes in Green Bay history after hitting Allen Lazard for an 11-yard score in the first quarter of Saturday's game.  

Aaron Rodgers now has the most passing touchdowns in Green Bay Packers history after connecting with Allen Lazard on an 11-yard score in the first quarter of Saturday's game against the Cleveland Browns. 

Rodgers has 443 passing touchdowns in his career, topping Favre's 442 in Green Bay.

The 38-year-old tied Favre during the Week 15 game against the Baltimore Ravens, although he was much more efficient in his path to the franchise record:

Favre praised Rodgers after the accomplishment:

"It's been a special run for me to be able to follow up a legend," Rodgers said of Favre on Fox.

Favre starred in Green Bay from 1992 to 2007, winning three MVP awards and one Super Bowl title. Rodgers was drafted in 2005 and spent three years as the veteran's backup before taking over, also earning three MVPs with one Super Bowl over his 14 seasons as a starter.

Rodgers has a chance to add to both of those marks in 2021 as one of the favorites for MVP while leading one of the top Super Bowl contenders.

From a statistical standpoint, the next step will be to catch Favre's career total of 508 passing touchdowns.

Favre notably continued his career beyond the Packers, spending one year with the New York Jets and two with the Minnesota Vikings before retiring. Rodgers has an uncertain future beyond this season with Jordan Love potentially set to take over under center.

Depending on his longevity, Rodgers could continue to climb the all-time touchdown list with Favre, Peyton Manning (539), Drew Brees (571) and Tom Brady (617) ahead of him. 

Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy announced Friday that Nick Foles will start at quarterback in Sunday's Week 16 game against the Seattle Seahawks with Justin Fields unable to practice because of an ankle injury.

Nagy said Fields, who's listed as questionable, will serve as the backup if he's cleared to play. Andy Dalton is out with groin and left hand injuries, so Ryan Willis would be elevated from the practice squad as the backup if Fields is out.

The fanbase got its wish when the Bears not only selected Fields with the No. 11 pick in the 2021 draft but also elevated him to the starting role in Week 3 due to an injury to Dalton.

The organization hasn't exactly set Fields up for success right out of the gate, though. The offensive line has been consistently bad, and head coach Matt Nagy seemed unable to tailor the offense to the rookie's skill set.

Through 12 appearances, the Ohio State product has thrown for 1,870 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He has also suffered injuries to his ribs and left hand over the course of the year.

Fields has been one of the better quarterbacks from the 2021 draft class, which is both an endorsement of his play and an indictment of his fellow first-year signal-callers.

At 4-10, the Bears are already assured of their first losing season since 2017, and they could be looking at a coaching change in the offseason. Another injury to Fields adds to a bitterly disappointing year in the Windy City.

Foles, the Super Bowl LII MVP with the Philadelphia Eagles, started seven games for the Bears last season. He'll reclaim the top spot on the depth chart for at least one week as he makes his first appearance of 2021.

Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell said Friday quarterback Jared Goff is "highly unlikely" to play in Sunday's Week 16 game against the Atlanta Falcons after being placed on the NFL's reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday.

Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network reported Tim Boyle would draw the start over fellow reserve David Blough if Goff is ruled out. 

The Lions' starting QB was among the record-setting 47 players placed on the NFL's reserve/COVID-19 list on Monday.

Acquiring the two-time Pro Bowler made sense for the Lions heading into the 2021 season. Matthew Stafford was on his way out the door, leaving them in need of a new starting quarterback.

The front office gave itself a full year to see whether Goff could be a long-term solution and turn his career around following a disappointing end to his Los Angeles Rams tenure.

Things haven't changed much for the 27-year-old in the Motor City. Through 13 games, he has thrown for 3,007 yards, 17 touchdowns and eight interceptions. It's becoming increasingly clear the Lions will probably need to look toward the 2022 NFL draft for their next quarterback.

As much as Goff has struggled, Detroit's QB situation gets pretty dire without him.

Boyle started in a Week 11 loss to the Cleveland Browns, finishing 15-of-23 for 77 yards and two interceptions. Blough is the other alternative, and his last cameo saw him throwing for 984 yards, four touchdowns and six interceptions over five games in 2019.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has never faced Cleveland Browns star Myles Garrett, but the reigning MVP knows just how special the veteran defensive end is, telling reporters that he'll be a Hall of Famer if he continues to play at an elite level. 

"He legitimately has gold-jacket possibilities in his future if he keeps playing the way he's playing for a few more years," Rodgers told reporters.

Garrett's status for Saturday's Christmas matchup between the Packers and Browns was in question after the 25-year-old suffered a groin injury in Monday's 16-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. 

However, the All-Pro defensive end told reporters that he believes he'll play "regardless" of how he feels. He's not sure if he'll be able to handle a full workload at Lambeau Field, though, because he hasn't practiced all week.

Garrett is in the midst of one of his best seasons in the NFL. He leads the Browns with a career-high 15 sacks, which is tied for third in the league and has recorded three passes defended, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, 48 tackles, 16 tackles for a loss and 28 quarterback hits. 

The Texas A&M product was also recently named to the Pro Bowl for the second straight season.

If Garrett is unable to play against the Packers, the Browns could have some problems along the defensive line. Fellow defensive end Jadeveon Clowney's status is unclear after he was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list, and Cleveland is already without Takkarist McKinley, who was ruled out for the season after tearing his Achilles against the Raiders. 

Rodgers is also playing at a high level and will undoubtedly cause problems for the Browns defense, regardless if Garrett plays. The 38-year-old has completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 3,487 yards and 30 touchdowns against just four interceptions in 13 games. 

Saturday's game is a huge one for the Browns, who control their own postseason destiny. If they defeat the Packers, Pittsburgh Steelers and Cincinnati Bengals, they have a 97 percent chance to make the playoffs, per the New York Times' interactive projections.

If the Browns lose to the Packers, they still have a 39 percent chance to make the postseason with wins over the Steelers and Bengals. If they lose all three games, or two of three, they'll likely miss the postseason. 

Given the playoff implications, it should come as no surprise that Garrett expects to play, regardless if he isn't fully healthy.  

Running back Dalvin Cook was among three Minnesota Vikings players placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Thursday.

Cook will miss Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Rams, per Minnesota offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak:

Of note, the Vikings (7-7) currently own the final spot in the NFC playoff race.

Minnesota recently had to play without Cook after he suffered a dislocated left shoulder and torn labrum in the team's Week 12 loss to the San Francisco 49ers. He made a quick recovery, however, and returned to the lineup in time for a Week 14 clash with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The 26-year-old Florida State product is one of the league's top offensive playmakers when healthy. He's recorded 1,288 yards from scrimmage and six total touchdowns in 11 games this season.

Alexander Mattison takes over atop the Vikes' backfield depth chart with Cook sidelined.

Minnesota's offense is built on trying to maintain a balanced attack, and that's always a tougher task when Cook isn't available to lead the ground game.

A group of NFL executives believe Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will be named the league MVP. 

In a survey of 23 high-ranking personnel by NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Rodgers beat out Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor for the award by an 11-8 voting margin. 

As most of the other top quarterbacks who have been in the MVP conversation have stumbled recently, Rodgers has caught fire over the past four weeks.

The 38-year-old is averaging 325.3 passing yards per game with a 70.6 completion percentage, 13 touchdowns and no interceptions since Week 11. Green Bay is averaging 35.8 points per game during that span. 

For the season, Rodgers leads the NFL in ESPN's QBR metric (67.3), is tied for fifth in the NFL in touchdown passes (30) and seventh in completion percentage (67.8). He has the lowest interception rate among all qualified quarterbacks (0.9 percent).

"I'd love to not say he's the guy, because he's easy to root against," one NFC team executive told Pelissero, "but f--king Aaron Rodgers, [he's] amazing."

The Colts' ascent to AFC playoff contenders has coincided with Taylor turning into a superstar. 

After being held to a total of 171 rushing yards through the first three games of the season, Taylor is averaging 122.5 yards per game on the ground and has scored 19 total touchdowns (17 rushing) since Week 4. 

Taylor has eight 100-yard rushing games this season, including at least 170 yards three times since Week 9. The Colts are 8-0 when he hits the century mark and 0-6 when he doesn't. 

If Rodgers wins the award, he would join Peyton Manning as the only players in NFL history with at least four MVPs. He would also be the first player since Manning—the all-time leader with five MVPs—in 2008 and 2009 to win it in back-to-back seasons. 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady was the only other player to receive two votes in the survey. Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Cooper Kupp and Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert each received one vote.    

Teven Jenkins didn't have a great night in the Chicago Bears' 17-9 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, but Justin Fields appreciated one thing the offensive lineman did do. 

Speaking to reporters after the game, Fields explained he "loved" Jenkins sticking up for him after a Vikings player shoved the rookie quarterback out of bounds. 

"I told him I liked what he did there and I appreciate him," Fields said. "At the same time, he’s got to be smart. But I loved the mindset and I loved him sticking up for me. I think that’s what I think we need more of. I told him I love it but just do it between the whistle."

Jenkins was flagged for unnecessary roughness, putting the Bears in a 2nd-and-22. They did pick up 13 yards on their next two plays, but they were forced to punt the ball away. 

The 23-year-old Jenkins was called for three penalties during the game. 

At the time of the unnecessary roughness call, Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune noted Jenkins had been flagged for seven penalties in his past seven quarters played. 

Jenkins made his first career start on Monday. The 23-year-old was selected with the No. 39 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft. He didn't appear in a game until Week 13 when he played two snaps on special teams against the Arizona Cardinals. 

When Jason Peters suffered a sprained ankle last week against the Green Bay Packers, Jenkins stepped in to play left tackle for the remainder of the game. 

Even though Jenkins clearly has a lot of fundamental things to work on before being a viable NFL player, at least he appears to have ingratiated himself as a teammate willing to protect his guys based on his reaction to the Fields situation.