EYES ON AARON: Jason Pierre-Paul says it’s imperative the Giants don’t let Aaron Rodgers slide around the pocket and make plays with his legs.
The impressive body of work, largely the handiwork of his impressive body, allows Jason Pierre-Paul to exude a serene confidence, but even the man they call JPP realizes this is different.
He has already said he expects to win Sunday at Lambeau Field and even though he’s only in his second season with the Giants, he’s gone up against Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers — all in a dizzying five-week stretch — getting an up-close look at the three best quarterbacks in the NFL. Brady and Brees are great, Pierre-Paul concedes, but what’s up next for the Giants in the NFC Divisional playoff game against the 15-1 Packers is the ultimate test against the ultimate quarterback.
“They’re nothing like Aaron Rodgers, man,’’ Pierre-Paul told The Post yesterday. “He’s mobile, he’s patient and he gets the job done. You got to respect that. And he’s got great receivers, too, at every position. We couldn’t get off the field on third down. They hurt us, but you live and you learn from it.’’
What Pierre-Paul learned most of all is that as gifted as Rodgers is throwing the ball — 45 touchdown passes, six interceptions — his footwork and ability to escape pressure in the pocket makes him the elite of the elite. Rodgers is not a scrambler in the Michael Vick mode and he’s been sacked 36 times so it is not as if he cannot be found or touched, but he is more than athletic enough to break a defense’s heart by legging out a key third-down pickup.
“It’s a problem,’’ defensive coordinator Perry Fewell said. “If he just sat back in the pocket, it would be a lot more comfortable for us.’’
Rodgers was the Packers’ leading rusher the first time these teams tangled, gaining 32 yards on four scrambles in Green Bay’s 38-35 victory. He picked up 13 yards late in the second quarter to keep a drive alive that ended with a touchdown pass to Donald Driver.
“We’ve played some great offenses, they’re probably No. 1,’’ said defensive end Dave Tollefson, once a teammate of Rodgers’ with the Packers. “Aaron is a great quarterback, not only throwing the ball but the guy can move a little bit, not even a little bit, I’m cutting him short there. He can move really well. You got to stay on top of him. You can’t let him get a breath of air. You’ve got to stay on him and keep that pressure because as soon as you give him the opportunity to come up from under and get a breath, he bangs you for a 45-yard touchdown.’’
Rodgers is skilled at buying time for himself with shifty, clever maneuvering, sliding around the pocket until he locates a passing lane to deliver with his laser-like arm.
“I mean, he’s kind of like Houdini out there a little bit,’’ defensive tackle Chris Canty said.
A spy might be used to corral Houdini. Mathias Kiwanuka smiled and said “We’ll see’’ when asked if the Giants will devote a defender exclusively to Rodgers, not wanting to divulge anything because, “They read the papers, too.’’ Kiwanuka and Jacquian Williams would be likely candidates for the assignment.
“We’ve been here,” Kiwanuka said. “We’ve played Vick, [Donovan] McNabb; we understand as a group how to keep a quarterback in the pocket, how to get push up the middle and then for everybody in coverage how to come down once he scrambles.”
The Giants defensive linemen are making it clear that this game is about their ability to make Rodgers uncomfortable. They want to push the pile from the middle, disrupting Rodgers’ vision. He threw for 369 yards and four touchdowns in the early December game against the Giants, but he also was harassed into throwing 18 incomplete passes, an unusually high number for a player who hits on 68.3 percent of his throws.
“We have some things that we’re trying to do on the back end to kind of get him to hold the ball a little bit longer, but the pressure is on our D-line,’’ Justin Tuck said. “Even when you can’t get to him, just to let him feel you, make sure you’re around him, maybe some batted passes. Make sure that he doesn’t have those windows to throw the ball in. That’s when he’s tremendously dangerous. He’s dangerous anyway, but obviously letting him sit back there and get comfortable, we don’t have a shot.’’