Teammates for three seasons, Aaron Rodgers has passed Brett Favre in the NFL record book after the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback threw his 509th career touchdown pass, moving into sole possession of fourth place on the league’s all-time list.
Rodgers, who tied Favre last week on a 9-yard pass to DK Metcalf, passed his former teammate on a 12-yard touchdown pass to Metcalf with 13:49 left in the first half of Sunday’s game against the Patriots.
Favre, who was teammates with Rodgers from 2005-07, held the NFL record for touchdown passes at the time of his retirement. A 2016 Hall of Fame inductee, Favre’s career highlights include a Super Bowl win and three consecutive league MVPs from 1995-97.
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In 2005, the Packers drafted Rodgers to serve as Favre’s eventual successor. Rodgers’ run as the Packers’ starting quarterback started in 2008 and ran through the 2022 season. Rodgers also won a Super Bowl in addition to four league MVPs during his years in Green Bay.
Rodgers capped off Sunday’s 21-14 win over the Patriots with a game-winning touchdown pass to Calvin Austin III, lifting his career touchdown total to 510.
Most career touchdown passes
“It’s just a longevity achievement,” Rodgers recently said when asked about passing Favre, via The Athletic. “A lot of guys I’ve thrown touchdown passes to are from a number of teams now. A lot of guys are a part of that. Some touchdowns, you make exceptional plays. Some, the scheme is so good, like the one to Jaylen [Warren] in [Week 1], all I got to do is not screw it up. Sometimes you throw a short one to a guy and he goes 60. It goes in the column as the same.
“There’s been a lot of guys involved in that, including the guys blocking, the guys calling the plays. Every now and then I made some special throws that led to touchdowns, but I’ve been playing a long time, and it’s a longevity thing. I’m proud of it, but not a big deal.”
Favre wasn’t the only legendary quarterback Rodgers passed on Sunday. He also moved past Philip Rivers into sixth pass on the all-time career passing list. Rivers threw for 63,440 yards during his 17-year career that was mostly spent with the Chargers. Rodgers now has 63,538 yards and trails former Steeler Ben Roethlisberger by 550 yards.
