Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ future is getting hazier this offseason after Rodgers made some revealing comments about the team’s current trade conversations.
Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers doesn’t know if or whether he’ll play next season. Sound familiar?
In a deja vu of last offseason, Rodgers’ future in the NFL yet again hangs in the balance, and his latest comments suggest he and the Packers may be heading in separate directions.
Last week on The Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers acknowledged that he and the Packers would have to rework his deal if he stayed with the team in 2023, but that he was “open to all honest and direct conversations” with the Packers.
On Tuesday, Rodgers told Pat McAfee that he wasn’t a part of the trade conversations currently going on behind Green Bay’s closed doors. He noted that he’s “been insulated” to those conversations so far, which was “interesting.”
"I'm not a part of those conversations right now but when I make up my mind everybody will know"@AaronRodgers12 dives into the possibility of returning to the Packers #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/3e0QUXOGVZ
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) January 31, 2023
Green Bay Packers: Aaron Rodgers currently isn’t involved in ongoing trade conversations
As rumors continue to swirl surrounding a potential split between Rodgers and the Packers franchise, Rodgers had this to say about whether he will retire and return for his 19th season:
"“I feel confident that in a couple weeks I’ll feel more strongly about one of the two decisions.”"
Rodgers appears to be taking his sweet time to make a decision, and at this point, his career could take any number of turns. He could stay in Green Bay and re-negotiate his contract with the Packers, express a desire to play for another team and secure a trade (with the New York Jets, perhaps?), or retire altogether.
The fact that the Packers are having conversations without Rodgers doesn’t bode well for his chances to remain in Green Bay, though as last offseason showed, anything can happen.
On one hand, the Packers’ secret conversations could be seen as a slight to Rodgers with Green Bay wanting to quietly move on from him; on the other, the Packers may simply want to see all their options on the table to prepare for Rodgers’ ultimate decision.
It should be noted that Rodgers has a very complex contract with the Packers and is due roughly $60 million in guaranteed money this year and another $50 million in 2024. The Packers also have a long list of soon-to-be free agents including Randall Cobb, Robert Tonyan, and Allen Lazard who could lean toward leaving if Rodgers leaves, too.
And so the Rodgers saga drags on.