<
        >

          NFL Nation

          Packers rookie QB Tim Boyle buys his own Aaron Rodgers jersey

          play
          Golic and Wingo impressed by Rodgers' performance vs. Bears (1:37)

          Trey Wingo, Mike Golic and Mike Golic Jr. break down Aaron Rodgers' return to the game after an injury to rally the Packers past the Bears. (1:37)

          • Rob Demovsky, ESPN Staff WriterSep 10, 2018, 10:25 PM
            Close
              Rob Demovsky is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Green Bay Packers. He has covered the Packers since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2013. Demovsky is a two-time Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year as selected by the NSSA. You can follow him on Twitter at @RobDemovsky.
            Follow on X

          GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Tim Boyle's wardrobe of choice on Monday was like a lot of people's in town: He went with the Aaron Rodgers jersey.

          But Boyle isn't like most people in Green Bay.

          He's the Packers' No. 3 quarterback, and Boyle wasn't just planning to wear the jersey around the locker room. He had it on as he was leaving Lambeau Field on Monday afternoon.

          "No, I did not lose a bet," Boyle said. "I'm wearing it because it's a badass jersey."

          It wasn't some sort of rookie hazing ritual, either.

          Nor did he just pick it up from the equipment room.

          "Bought here in the [Packers] Pro Shop," Boyle said. "[It cost] $150."

          When asked whether he got an employee discount, the man whose own uniform is No. 8 said: "Yeah, but it's still a lot of money."

          Consider the rookie quarterback impressed after Rodgers' performance in Sunday night's regular-season opener, when he returned from a first-half knee injury and rallied the Packers from a 20-0 deficit to a 24-23 win over the Chicago Bears.

          Boyle, an undrafted rookie who played at Connecticut (where he threw one touchdown and 13 interceptions in three seasons) and Eastern Kentucky (11 touchdowns and 13 interceptions in his lone season), was a long shot to make the Packers when training camp opened. But his strong arm and preseason production earned him a spot on the 53-man roster after the Packers traded backup Brett Hundley to the Seattle Seahawks for a sixth-round pick.

          However, Boyle was inactive against the Bears. He likely will take an increased workload in practice this week, given Rodgers' injury and unknown availability for Sunday's game against the Minnesota Vikings. Even if Rodgers plays, there's a good chance Boyle will be active just in case.

          After Rodgers' injury against the Bears, the Packers were down to DeShone Kizer as the only available quarterback. Receiver Randall Cobb, who started his college career as quarterback, likely would have been the emergency QB.

          For Boyle, however, he said his week of preparation won't change.

          "No, our quarterback coach does a really good job of making sure that even for the P-squad guy on the roster, he'd know the game plan in and out," Boyle said. "DeShone and I are with him a lot in the [indoor practice field] making sure we know the game plan and we're comfortable with it. The difference between me being inactive or active is me just dressing, but I'll know the game plan. I felt comfortable with the game plan this past week."

          And with that, Boyle pulled up the hood on the sweatshirt he wore under his new No. 12 jersey and walked out of the stadium to join the others in Green Bay wearing their No. 12 Rodgers jerseys.