GREEN BAY, Wis. – Defensive coordinators used to be scared to blitz the Green Bay Packers. Aaron Rodgers would pick it apart.

Not so much anymore.

Through nine games, Rodgers has been blitzed at what would be the highest rate of his career if it holds up through the end of the season. According to ESPN Stats & Information, opposing defenses have blitzed – defined as five or more pass rushers – on 32.5 percent of the Packers’ dropbacks this season. That’s the 12th-highest rate in the NFL.

Last season, opponents blitzed the Packers on just 25.5 percent of their dropbacks, a rate that ranked 28th in the league. In 2012 and 2013, the blitz rate against the Packers ranked 30th in the league. Since Rodgers became a starter in 2008, the Packers have never been blitzed on more than 32 percent of their dropbacks and have never ranked higher than 22nd in blitz rate against them.

And here’s why: Rodgers came into this season with the second-highest passer rating (111.6) against the blitz dating to 2008. Only Tom Brady (113.8) was better, according to ESPN Stats & Info. This season, Rodgers’ passer rating of 100.7 against the blitz ranks 10th.

No time to relax Teams have ramped up the blitz against Aaron Rodgers, and it's working of late: Category 1st 4 games Last 5 games Blitz pct. 20 41 Comp pct 76.9 52.1 Sacks 1 12 Total QBR 91.7 46.0 Source: ESPN Stats & Info

It didn’t start out that way this season. But in the last five games, defensive play-callers have sent at least one extra pass rusher after Rodgers on 41 percent of his dropbacks, while Rodgers’ completion percentage has dropped and his sack total has gone up.

“Well it's five-man pressure,” Rodgers said. “Statistically they count that as a blitz, but that's not a blitz to us or anybody who coaches football. That's a five-man pressure, they're getting one-on-ones and that's what teams are doing. Yeah, that's five-man pressure.”

Regardless, it has hurt the Packers and until they can reverse their performance trend against it, there every reason to believe teams will continue to send an extra rusher or two after Rodgers.

“Well, we’ve seen it for the last several weeks, that teams have had success with it at times, and we’ve had success against it at times,” offensive play-caller Tom Clements said. “It’s always a cat-and-mouse game. We’re ready for it.”

It makes preparation for Clements, Rodgers and coach Mike McCarthy more difficult because even teams that have not shown a penchant for blitzing might do so more after seeing how other teams have succeeded doing so.

This week’s opponent, the Minnesota Vikings, might be the perfect case study. Their blitz rate of 30.1 percent ranks just 15th in the NFL, but the Packers’ offensive coaches will have to consider the possibility that coach Mike Zimmer will increase that based on what he has seen from the Packers’ recent opponents.

“We look at how teams have played and make a plan based on that,” Clements said. “We also anticipate that they may play a certain way because other teams have played a certain way, so you have to have things available to go to in order to combat both. You can’t always rely on what you see on film, so you have to prepare for that and say if they do this, then we have to do something else.”