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The Packers vs. Panthers betting line had Carolina as high as a -7 home favorite. With news that Aaron Rodgers is set to return, the line was sent down to -3 and could keep dropping.
Rodgers missed nearly two months with a broken collarbone injury that many believed would end his season. The Packers have managed to stay a game above the .500 mark but are three games behind the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC North.
"Hopefully, it gives a lift to some of the guys, but I'm not coming back to save this team," Rodgers said. "I'm coming back to play quarterback the way I know how to play it. Hopefully, we all raise the level of our play collectively and find a way to win these three games."
"I think our football has done an excellent job of finding different ways to win," head coach Mike McCarthy said. The Packers have gone 3-4 in Rodgers absence with Brett Hundley replacing Rodgers. "We're not going to go to Carolina with a bunch of false confidence. We understand the impact that Aaron Rodgers makes for our football team and, hell, the impact that he'd make for anybody's football team. He's a great player; he's an impact player. We're in a position that we're in. We're 7-6. We clearly understand what's on the line here."
The Packers were listed at 20/1 odds of winning the 2018 Super Bowl ahead of Week 15.
"I feel confident I will be able to go out there and play the way I've always played, but I've been off for seven games and been out for a while," Rodgers said. "So, it's going to take getting out there, getting that first pass, getting that first hit, and I'll probably settle in.”
The NFL Betting Power Ratings, which do not take into account Rodgers return, would have the line at Carolina -6. Rodgers is likely worth more than 3 points.
Two years ago, Carolina beat Green Bay at home 37-29 and went on to play in that season’s Super Bowl.
- Mary Montgomery, Gambling911.com
