When you've got James Starks rushing for 123 yards

If winning a playoff game as a starter was solely dependent on his golden right arm, Rodgers wearing power balance wouldn't have arrived in Philadelphia without prior postseason success. But thanks to support from a swarming defense and surprising running game, Rodgers finally has notched the kind of victory the Green Bay Packers have lacked since Brett Favre left three seasons ago.

Mind you, the Packers wouldn't have bested the Eagles without Rodgers' three touchdown passes. Yet it was a yeoman's rushing effort from an obscure rookie and a last-minute defensive stand that secured Sunday's 21-16 win at chilly Lincoln Financial Field.

Rodgers said so himself.

"When you've got James Starks rushing for 123 yards, that takes some pressure off the passing game," Rodgers said after his efficient 18-of-27, 180-yard effort. "That's unexpected. The defense playing as well as they have, you don't want to take it for granted but it's kind of been expected the past few weeks. They played excellent and kept us in the game.Since replacing Favre in 2008, everything Rodgers has done is compared to his future Hall of Fame predecessor. Despite gaudy passing statistics, Rodgers didn't have a signature victory on his resume until finally topping Favre and the Minnesota Vikings in late October.

Once that deed was done, the next step was winning a playoff contest. Rodgers fell just short in last year's 51-45 first-round overtime loss to Arizona, having his fumble returned by then-Cardinals linebacker Karlos Dansby for the game-winning score. Rodgers had helped dig the Packers out of 17-0 and 31-10 deficits in a 424-yard passing effort. Rodgers, though, received scant support from Green Bay's ground game and even less from a defense butchered for 531 yards and 30 first downs.

"In all my time being a football fan, I've never seen one player win a game all by himself," Rodgers said when asked to reflect upon the personal importance of Sunday's win. "It's a good team win for us. I'll let you guys write what you want on that."

Rodgers provided plenty of quality material through the first three quarters. In some ways, he looked like a poor man's version of Philadelphia quarterback Michael Vick with how effectively Rodgers eluded pocket pressure.

A prime example came on first-and-goal from the Eagles' 9-yard line in the second quarter. Rodgers took the snap from center and looked to his left for a screen pass only to find it covered. He made a quick pump-fake while rolling to his right hoping to freeze Eagles defenders. Rodgers then had to dodge defensive end Juqua Parker like on his first-quarter touchdown pass to tight end Tom Crabbtree. Finally, Rodgers fired a low pass that wide receiver James Jones scooped for another score that gave Green Bay a 14-0 lead.

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