Tom Brady vs. Aaron Rodgers by BruceM

Two answers required.

Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers were both born in California. Brady's birthplace, 20 miles south of San Francisco, contains Sony Interactive Entertainment headquarters. Rodgers was born 160 miles north of SF, near the second-oldest campus of the California State University system. Name both birthplace cities.

Two answers required.

Before Brady or Rodgers got to New England or Green Bay, the Patriots and Packers met in Super Bowl 31. Name both starting quarterbacks from that game.

Answers within two years are acceptable.

Cal and Michigan never played while Brady was in Ann Arbor or Rodgers in Berkeley. Those schools' last college football clash was a 38-13 Wolverine win, back when John Wangler passed to Anthony Carter, in what year (within two)?

Who was the losing quarterback in that 38-13 game? He was also the Packers' last first-round quarterback draftee prior to Rodgers, though he was far less successful in Green Bay than his fellow Cal Bear.

Cal and Michigan almost met in the 2005 Rose Bowl, in Rodgers's last college season. Instead, Texas edged out Cal for the #4 BCS position (and last at-large BCS bowl bid), after what Longhorn coach openly lobbied other coaches to rank Texas higher than Cal in the coaches' poll?

Any one of four answers is acceptable.

Brady threw four touchdown passes in his first start at Lambeau Field, a 35-0 win in November 2006. (Rodgers did not start but did get sacked three times on 4-for-12, 32-yard passing.) Two of those TDs went to tight ends who played college ball at Colorado and Georgia. One went to a WR (Florida) and one to a RB (Minnesota).

Name any one of the four players who caught a touchdown pass from Brady that game.

The Patriots got five sacks in that 2006 game, including 1.5 each from Ty Warren and which current NFL coach?

Rodgers missed the Packers' 2010 game at New England with a concussion. Instead, what LSU alumnus made his first NFL start in a 31-27 loss? His second career start, against Detroit in week 17 a year later, was far better (and more lucrative) for him, as his six touchdown passes helped him get a massive free agent contract with Seattle.

In November 2014, Rodgers and Brady each threw two touchdown passes in a 26-21 Packers win at Lambeau. Brandon LaFell caught both of Brady's TD passes. Rodgers targeted Randall Cobb and Davante Adams 11 times each (Cobb caught 7 for 85 yards, Adams 6 for 121) but threw touchdown passes to Richard Rodgers (no relation) and to which wide receiver from Kansas State?

In November 2018, the Patriots beat Green Bay at home, 31-17. The last scoring play was Brady's only touchdown pass, caught by what former Cleveland Brown who has been suspended several times (most recently in January 2021) for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy?

Brady and Rodgers faced off in Tampa Bay in October 2020. Brady threw second-quarter touchdown passes to Tyler Johnson and (yes) Rob Gronkowski in a 38-10 romp. Which Buccaneer RB scored two rushing touchdowns on 23 carries for 113 yards?

This quiz will go live before we know who won the January 2021 NFC Championship game. On the first drive of that game Brady threw a TD pass to Mike Evans, the seventh pick of the 2014 draft. One of the six players taken ahead of Evans was which University of Central Florida quarterback?

He may not belong in the same conversation as Brady or Rodgers but he had more passing yards than Rodgers (320 to 199) in a September 2016 home loss to Green Bay, and more than Brady (293 to 290) in the January 2018 AFC Championship.