Receiver Greg Jennings on Playing with Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers

GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 10:  Wide receiver Greg Jennings #85 of the Green Bay Packers catches the ball for a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the third quarter of the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 10, 2010 in Glendale, Arizona.   (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 10: Wide receiver Greg Jennings #85 of the Green Bay Packers catches the ball for a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the third quarter of the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 10, 2010 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ - JANUARY 10: Wide receiver Greg Jennings #85 of the Green Bay Packers catches the ball for a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the third quarter of the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 10, 2010 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
Greg Jennings catches the ball for a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the third quarter of the 2010 NFC wild-card playoff game at University of Phoenix Stadium on January 10, 2010 in Glendale, Arizona. (Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

 

Reaching the NFL is beyond the dreams of most of us, but even among those who make the league, Greg Jennings had a uniquely privileged career. Drafted by the Green Packers out of Western Michigan University in 2006, Jennings played for two quarterbacks destined for the Hall of Fame during his six years with the team. He went on to play for the Minnesota Vikings and the Miami Dolphins, but Jennings’ career will be defined by his time in Wisconsin. Before retiring last week, the 32-year-old penned the latest installment of The Players Tribune’s “What You Don’t Know About” series in which an athlete explores their position and provides their exclusive perspective.

Packers receiver Greg Jennings straight arms Seahawks linebacker Kevin Bentley during a snowy Monday Night Football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks at Qwest Field in Seattle, Washington on November 27, 2006. (Kirby Lee/NFLPhotoLibrary)
Packers receiver Greg Jennings straight-arms Seahawks linebacker Kevin Bentley during a snowy Monday Night Football game between the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks at Qwest Field in Seattle, Washington on November 27, 2006. (Kirby Lee/NFLPhotoLibrary)

 

Under the tutelage of Brett Favre, Jennings blossomed as a wide receiver through a relationship built on trust:

“I gained so much trust from Brett. As a rookie, he made it a lot easier for me to excel. He came to me all the time and asked me straight up, ‘Greg, were you open?’ Or, ‘What did you see?’ That meant the world to me because Brett was letting me know: O.K., young fella, you do know what you’re talking about; you do have a good football IQ. He put the onus on me to tell him what I was seeing.”

Jennings goes on to elaborate on his relationship with and respect for Aaron Rodgers (with whom he won a Super Bowl), getting demolished by the defense in one of his early seasons, and how Green Bay was the last place he wanted to be drafted. Read the full story by Greg Jennings here. Watch a “Sport Science” segment on how the wide receiver overcame his weight and height deficiencies, then watch Jennings prove his method behind the science with the highlight video underneath that.

 

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