Blogs

Packers elect six playoff captains

The Packers have voted for and selected their six captains for the 2012 postseason.

They are QB Aaron Rodgers and WR James Jones on offense, LB Clay Matthews and DB Charles Woodson on defense, and DB Jarrett Bush and LB Jamari Lattimore on special teams.

Those six players will wear a “C” patch on their jerseys for Saturday night’s game against Minnesota and for as many postseason games as the Packers play. The Packers don’t have any players wear a “C” during the regular season, as some teams do, because they choose weekly captains to go out for the coin toss each game.

Rodgers, Woodson and Bush have all been elected playoff captains in past years.

Rodgers finished the regular season as the NFL’s top-rated passer for the second season in a row. He posted a 108.0 rating, more than two points higher than Denver’s Peyton Manning, who was second at 105.8. Rodgers completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 4,295 yards with 39 TDs and only eight interceptions.

Jones led the Packers and the league in TD receptions with 14. He became the first Packers player to lead the league in that category since Sterling Sharpe had 18 TD catches in 1994. Jones also set career highs this season in both receptions (64) and yards (784).

Matthews led the Packers in sacks with 13, which fell just one-half sack short of his career high set in 2010. He ranked fifth in the league despite missing four games.

Woodson had just one interception and 1 1/2 sacks this season but has missed the last nine games with a broken collarbone. He has been medically cleared to play in the playoffs.

Bush and Lattimore are two of the Packers’ four special teams players who recorded double digits in coverage tackles. Bush led the team with 17 and added a fumble recovery, while Lattimore recorded 10.