Brett Hundley is Scott Tolzien With Better PR

Twice since he took over as a starter, the Packers have had to replace Aaron Rodgers for an extended period of time. Aside from a brief cameo from Seneca Wallace, Scott Tolzien and Brett Hundley have been the men called upon to fill his MVP-sized shoes.

Both players, though short on experience, were backup by their head coach publicly and forcefully.

In 2013 following a 27-13 loss against the New York Giants in primetime, coach Mike McCarthy said of Tolzien: “I have never seen a quarterback hit all his big throws like that in a game.”

After Monday night’s loss to the Lions, McCarthy said after the game, “I believe in Brett, and that’s not just a press-conference statement. He’s got what it takes. He has it in his body, he has it in his mind and he definitely has the heart.”

But ultimately, results matter the most, and both Tolzien in 2013 and Hundley this season have failed to win a game for the Packers as the primary quarterback. That should give the Packers plenty of reason for concern.

Can the Packers escape the sunk cost fallacy?

I’ll echo what my colleague Jon Meerdink wrote a few weeks ago – the Packers are rapidly talking themselves into Brett Hundley because of the sunk cost fallacy.

Much has been made about Green Bay liking Hundley enough to trade up for him – and he’s looked extremely capable of playing the quarterback position during the preseason. Then again, so did Tolzien.

Across nine preseason appearances in three years, Hundley has completed 98 of 148 passes for 1,179 yards, while tossing 10 touchdowns and 2 interceptions for a passer rating of 107.3.

In seven preseason appearances across two years, Tolzien completed 66 of 102 passes for 727 yards, while tossing 5 touchdowns and an interception for a passer rating of 97.9.

The Packers traded up for Hundley in 2015, but now face an important decision for the remaining eight games.

Investing draft picks, three years of development and training, and now three regular season games simply isn’t enough to continue to start Brett Hundley at quarterback. If the Packers feel Joe Callahan, Jerod Evans or even a street free agent can give them a chance to win, they would be best served to bench Hundley.