Troy Aikman has surprising take on NFC playoff favorite

The Green Bay Packers are favored to win the Super Bowl with one week left in the regular season, but Troy Aikman has not been as impressed with them as many others have.

Aikman discussed the NFC playoff picture during an appearance on “The Adam Schefter Podcast” this week. He was asked about the Dallas Cowboys’ chances of winning the Super Bowl, and he expressed optimism about the situation his former team is facing. Part of the reason for that is Aikman is not quite buying into all the hype surrounding the Packers.

“I don’t think there is a real frontrunner in the NFC,” Aikman said. “I know a lot of people would say Green Bay, but I’ve covered a lot of Packers games and they’ve played some pretty average football teams and barely gotten out of those games with a win. Aaron Rodgers, of course, if he’s not their quarterback they lose a lot more of those games. I think it is wide open in the NFC.”

Aikman said any of the arguments made against picking the Cowboys to make a deep playoff run could also be applied to the other NFC contenders, including Green Bay. You can hear more of his commentary below:

Aikman is right that the Packers would have a much worse record without Rodgers, but that doesn’t mean much. Rodgers is once again playing some of the best football of his career. He has 3,977 yards, 35 touchdowns and just four interceptions this season. He’s likely going to win his second consecutive NFL MVP Award. With the way he has played, it’s hard to imagine a team coming into Green Bay and beating him.

Of course, anything can happen in the playoffs. Perhaps Aikman will be right about the Cowboys. It’s worth noting that he was also critical of another NFC contender a few weeks ago, so the Hall of Famer may simply have some bias.

Photo: Nov 21, 2019; Houston, TX, USA; Dallas Cowboys former quarterback Troy Aikman attends the NFL game between the Houston Texans and the Indianapolis Colts at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports