GREEN BAY, Wis. Aaron Rodgers had just broken Brett Favres franchise record for touchdown pa ses. He had just kept the Green Bay Packers in control of the No. 1 seed in the NFC with a fourth consecutive win. He had just solidified his spot in the race for a fourth MVP.It would be a Merry Christmas for Rodgers.But it was a question about Yosh Nijman in which Rodgers perhaps flashed one of his biggest smiles on Saturday night.Its totally amazing. Thats the beauty of football, Rodgers said. This game shows you something different all the time. It surprises you. Theres stories that emerge every single season that warm Carl Lawson Jersey your heart and make you feel good about what youre doing and how special this game is. Yosh is one of them.An undrafted free agent in 2019, Nijman wasnt supposed to be one of those heart-warming stories. Elgton Jenkins was supposed to be the man holding down the fort for David Bakhtiari until the five-time All-Pro was back at left tackle. Instead, Nijman went from the roster bubble at the start of training camp to starting three games when Jenkins sprained an ankle to starting the last four games following Jenkins torn ACL. Maybe Bakhtiari will be back for the playoffs. Maybe not. What is certain is Nijmans terrific play in seven starts is a big reason why the Packers are 12-3 headed into Sunday nights game against the Minnesota Vikings.I thought he had a nice camp, was wondering how hed fit on the squad, Rodgers continued. Sure enough, he was thrust in the starting lineup pretty quickly and hes done a great job. I love in this game when the Brandon LaFell Jersey confidence that a player starts to gain allows them to open up and you see more of the personality. I think its a really special part of this. We love seeing that personality from Yosh not just The Robot but his confidence and him talking more. Hes a quiet man by nature. He goes about his busine s and doesnt say a whole lot and makes zero excuses and just goes out and plays hard. Im really proud of how hes played and love seeing him in the huddle and seeing his personality continue to come out and grow and shine, because hes a great human being.Scroll to ContinueNijman has reason to be playing with more and more confidence. The high-quality preseason that punched his ticket on the roster wasnt a fluke. Pittsburghs T.J. Watt leads the NFL with 17.5 sacks. Hes followed by Chicagos Robert Quinn (17 sacks), Clevelands Myles Garrett (15), San Franciscos Nick Bosa (15) and Cincinnatis Trey Hendrickson (14). The Packers faced all five of them, plus future Hall of Famer Von Miller of the Rams, with Nijman the primary blocker in Ja'Marr Chase Jersey each game. He gave up a sack in only two of those games (two vs. Hendrickson, one vs. Quinn), according to Pro Football Focus.On Saturday, the matchup was against Garrett. He entered the game ranked second in NFL history with 0.88 sacks per game. Garrett wasnt at his best due to a groin injury and had just one a sisted tackle and one quarterback hit.Of 66 offensive tackles with at least 285 pa s-protecting snaps, Nijman ranks 36th in PFFs pa Logan Woodside Jersey s-protection metric, which measures sacks, hits and hurries per pa sing play. He hasnt always been great but hes been consistently good enough to let coach Matt LaFleur run his offense. Helped by the offensive game plan and Rodgers quick release, Nijman hasnt had to win those matchups by himself. But his ascending play has given LaFleur greater confidence that his young left tackle can get the job done.Yosh has been big time for our team, LaFleur said. He's done an outstanding job. I think our offensive staff does a great job game planning. I've said it many times: Steno and Butkus offensive line coaches Adam Stenavich and Luke Butkus do a great job of helping our players get prepared. But also, it comes down to the players and their ability to take whatever it is you're giving them and go out there and execute. Im super-proud of him, just the work he puts in on a daily basis, his approach to the game and how much it means to him, and it's evident. Before each game, I always go up to him. He cares about this a lot and that's why he puts so much time and effort into it.Bakhtiaris ACL tear, sustained at practice almost exactly one year ago, perhaps kept the Packers out of last years championship game. Bakhtiari didnt practice last week, perhaps a sign that it will be up to Nijman to protect Rodgers Ryan Finley Jersey blind side all the way to Los Angeles for the Super Bowl.I would just say that Im proud of myself contributing to the team the way I have and Im just grateful once again, Nijman said last week. Im just grateful to put on that helmet, be in the NFL and playing for the Packers. Its really a dream come true given all the circumstances. Im just grateful, really grateful.