During last season's broadcast of the Packers/Cowboys game, John Madden relayed the fact that Aaron Rodgers had told him that Rodgers only reads one side of the field. I was shocked and appalled.

Apparently, Rodgers is in good company.

From Fran Tarkenton (via Smart Football):

I don't try to read an entire coverage. It's impossible. Nobody's got that kind of peripheral vision. My system is to read one or two men. On a lot of patterns, I'll read the middle linebacker. Or the free safety. As soon as I get the snap of the ball, they're committed one way or the other. Their movement tells me where I'm going to go, which half of the field I should concentrate on. I don't care if the defensive back falls down on the other side, and one of my guys is jumping up and down, waving for a touchdown pass, there's no way I'm going to see him. I've already wiped that half of the field out of my mind.

Somewhere, Mike Holmgren's head just exploded.