Rodgers-to-Rodgers TD 'a little bit of freestyle'

He wasn't the first option on the play, but the result was a first for Richard Rodgers.

The rookie tight end had to wait until his 11th game as a pro to haul in his first touchdown pass, and what seemed like an eternity for the ball to reach him Sunday in the end zone.

On first-and-goal from the Vikings' 1-yard line in the second quarter, Aaron Rodgers rolled right while Richard Rodgers, lined up on the left, faked a block and migrated to the left corner of the end zone.

Aaron Rodgers was about three-quarters of the way to the right sideline before looking left and throwing the ball about 40 yards across the field to a wide-open Richard Rodgers.

The ball seemed to hang in the air like a punt.

"It felt like it took forever," the rookie said. "I don't know, I was just open, no one was really covering me, so I was just standing back there waving."

The quarterback said after the game that the play wasn't designed that way.

"Well, that was a little bit of freestyle, if you will," Aaron Rodgers said. "The play is not designed that way. It's a play-action with (Andrew Quarless) as the first look in the right flat and there's only two guys in the route. Richie is the other option.

"Based on the motion pre-snap when we sent (Justin) Perillo in motion, I felt like I was going to need to extend the play in order to hit Andrew. It didn't feel great that the backside was going to be open, so as I came off the fake and extended the play, Andrew got caught a little bit inside, so that was dead, and at the last minute I kind of saw (Rodgers) out of the corner of my eye and knew I had to put a little something on that to get it over there."

The rookie sold the play, and there were no Vikings defenders within yards of him.

"You just fake like you're blocking and leak out and hopefully no one covers you," Richard Rodgers said, "and it ended up perfectly for us."

The touchdown gave the Packers a 14-7 lead and the rookie a game ball.

"Probably give it to my dad," said Rodgers, whose father, Richard Sr., is the special teams coordinator for the Carolina Panthers.