Brett Favre: Aaron Rodgers took some of the hardest hits of his career vs. Vikings

Week 1 was a rough one for Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. Not only did Rodgers see his Packers lose, 23-7, to their arch-rivals, the Minnesota Vikings, but the four-time MVP played poorly.

It, of course, wasn't all his fault. He is Aaron Rodgers, after all. It's not like he all of a sudden became Ryan Leaf.

Green Bay's offensive line was down All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari and Pro Bowl guard Elgton Jenkins. Couple those injuries with the fact that the Vikings have a stellar pass rush led by former Packer Za'Darius Smith, and it made sense that Rodgers felt pressure for much of the game.

But was it really that bad?

According to the quarterback Rodgers replaced, Brett Favre, yes it was. Favre, a legend in his own right, thinks Rodgers took some of the hardest hits of his career on Sunday afternoon.

"We saw a Vikings defense that was hungry and ferocious. Aaron got some of the hardest hits that maybe he's gotten in his career. At least, it looked like that from my perspective," Favre said on the33rdteam.com.

Favre specifically mentioned Minnesota stifling Green Bay's downfield passing game as one of the reasons Rodgers struggled in Week 1.

"You can count on three fingers how many games that's happened to Aaron in his career, so kudos to the Vikings," Favre said.

Favre, of course, is an apropos commentator on this matchup. Though he became a legend with the Packers — winning three MVPs and a Super Bowl in Green Bay — he did end his career with two seasons as starting quarterback of the Vikings.