Bell: Aaron Rodgers claws Packers to the top vs. Pats

GREEN BAY, Wis. – These were no mere Bears, Panthers or Vikings.

They were the Patriots, and all of what that represents.

Brady. Belichick. Revis Island. Exotic blitzes. Matchup coverages.

No matter.

Aaron Rodgers found a way to win just the same.

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"It was a struggle," the Packers quarterback said after the 26-21 victory against New England.

Maybe it was also a preview of Super Bowl XLIX, and if that's the case it was well worth the experience for Rodgers. He came out on top in his first head-to-head matchup against Tom Brady and very likely took another step toward winning another NFL Most Valuable Player Award.

Yet he left Lambeau Field knowing that he had been through the ringer.

Rodgers passed for 346 yards on Sunday, when the Packers stayed perfect (6-0) at home. Given all of the blowouts they've had on their home turf it is a bit surprising to note that the game also marked the most yards Rodgers put up in a game at Lambeau all season.

Yes, more than he had in that game against Chicago when he threw six TD passes.

But for such a banner day, who would have thought that the 100-yard game would have come from rookie receiver Davante Adams, rather than Jordy Nelson or Randall Cobb?

Or that the first touchdown would come on a throw to another rookie, tight end Richard Rodgers?

The Packers (9-3) drove inside the red zone four times ... and left with zero touchdowns.

And in the second half, Green Bay managed just three points.

Those anomalies tell us something else about what it took for A-Rodgers to win.

This time, Rodgers had to get down and dirty. He had to scratch and claw.

You won't see any follow-up stories this week about how the quarterback smirked amid a laugher.

Instead, he had to grin and bear it when someone stepped on his left hand.

This was about survival, testing will and being resourceful when it mattered most.

Bill Belichick, as you knew he would, cooked up a defensive gameplan that almost (just almost) made Nelson a non-factor and kept Cobb (7 catches, 85 yards) in check ... for much of the game.

"Great plan," Rodgers marveled afterward. "They mixed things up."

Sometimes, the Patriots rushed five or six defenders. At least a couple of times, Rodgers recalled, they only sent two rushers.

"A calculated rush," Rodgers called it. "They rushed to my depth, and then kind of sunk back underneath. There was rarely a time where the rush was high and wide. A very disciplined defense."

He knew this could afford extra time to extend plays in some cases, and on a day when the Packers converted 10 of 17 third downs (a season-high 58.8%), Rodgers repeatedly turned the extra time against the Patriots.

But the real rub came with the coverages, which is why in the days leading up to the showdown Rodgers hammered home the importance of winning his matchups to Adams.

New England (9-3) used its physical cornerbacks, all-pro Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner, with double-coverage help safety Devin McCourty, to typically account for Nelson and Cobb – the receivers to whom Rodgers targeted on more than half his passes this season, entering the game.

That left Adams, who caught no more than two passes in eight games this season, to work on Kyle Arrington and Logan Ryan. Richard Rodgers, the backup tight end, beat Patrick Chung to win the matchup on the 32-yard TD on a post pattern.

Still, Rodgers – who extended his NFL record to 360 consecutive passes at home without an interception – connected with his bread-and-butter targets on two of his biggest throws.

Facing a third-and-two from the Patriots' 45, Rodgers saw Nelson matched wide on the island against Revis and called a timeout.

He saw something.

When play resumed, Rodgers hit Nelson on an in-route. Nelson took it across the field and to the pylon for the touchdown, 14 seconds before halftime, that ultimately held up as the difference.

The game was won with a seven-yard completion over the middle to Cobb, just before the two-minute warning, with the Patriots out timeouts and the game hinging on a third-and-four.

Rodgers drifted in the pocket just long enough for Cobb to separate, then threaded the needle with the pass.

It is never all on the quarterback. Packers coach Mike McCarthy beamed about the big plays coming from all of his units down the stretch, which included Mike Daniels and Mike Neal sandwiching Brady for a nine-yard sack on New England's last third down.

On a day the offense sputtered in the red zone, the defense allowed Brady and Co. just 21 points.

"You have to find ways to win, and you have to do it as many different ways as possible," McCarthy said. "That's how teams grow."

That his would-be MVP quarterback is still growing, too, says a lot about how far they can go.

Follow Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell.