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Playing NFL matchmaker: Rodgers, Johnson would have made perfect pairing

Jeff Hanisch / USA TODAY Sports

On occasion, Cupid's arrow misses its mark, and we're deprived of some potentially perfect NFL partnerships. However, that doesn't mean we can't still wonder what could have been.

In honor of Valentine's Day, let's look at three duos that were made for each other, but were destined to never meet.

Aaron Rodgers - Calvin Johnson

This connection was never likely to happen, with Aaron Rodgers and Calvin Johnson playing for divisional rivals Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions, respectively. However, the two would have made magic together.

It's more than simply pairing arguably the best quarterback and wide receiver of the past five seasons. Rodgers and Johnson's skill sets perfectly complement each other.

Rodgers is one of the best deep throwers in the game, and in his prime, there was no one who could match Johnson's athleticism and leaping ability. When you start to pair quarterbacks and receivers to try and create the ideal combination, you simply cannot top Rodgers and Johnson.

With Johnson expected to retire, it seems we'll never get to witness him play with a truly elite quarterback (sorry Matthew Stafford).

Bill Belichick - Larry Fitzgerald

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick does not offer praise lightly, so when he comments on an opposing player, it carries weight. Larry Fitzgerald is one of the very select few that Belichick has openly gushed over.

It could very well have happened after Fitzgerald's career with the Arizona Cardinals appeared to be coming to a close due to his inflated contract. If the two parties didn't come to an agreement to restructure his deal and instead parted ways, Belichick would have presumably done everything in his power to bring him to New England.

Fitzgerald is a master route-runner and possesses arguably the best hands in the NFL, which would make him an ideal fit in perfectionist Belichick's style of offense. His off-field demeanor, too, would make him Belichick's ideal receiver. Fitzgerald is a consummate professional, and there is nothing that Belichick holds more highly than professionalism. By pairing with Belichick, Fitzgerald would almost certainly have won the ring he so deserves.

2016 Chip Kelly - 2012 RG3

Robert Griffin III will likely never become the player he could have been, with injuries robbing him of his world-class athleticism.

While it's still possible that Griffin lands with Chip Kelly in San Francisco, it won't be the amazing partnership it would have been several seasons ago.

It would have been true love, and we know that true love can transcend time and space thanks to Christopher Nolan's slightly confusing sci-fi film "Interstellar." So let's imagine a scenario where present day Kelly is paired with the rookie version of Griffin.

Imagine Kelly - who hopefully has learned from his mistakes - running an offense with the 2012 version of Griffin at the helm. The quarterback found the best success of his career during his rookie season in an offense similar to that of Kelly's, and the 49ers head coach arguably would have continued to develop him even further.

They could have been each other's perfect match, a partnership that would have allowed the two to find the success that many envisioned for them earlier in their careers.

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