On the afternoon of March 15, 2023, legendary veteran Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers stated on The Pat McAfee Show that he intends to play the 2023 NFL season and that he intended to play for the New York Jets.
"I made it clear my intention was to play and my intention was to play for the New York Jets," Rodgers had stated, as reported by Yahoo! Sports. "And I haven't been holding anything up at this point. It's been compensation that the Packers are trying to get for me."
After winning back-to-back MVPs in the 2020 and 2021 seasons, the 39-year-old Rodgers could not live up to expectations in 2022. The Packers missed the playoffs with an 8-9 record, losing their final game to the division-rival Detroit Lions. Rodgers only threw 26 touchdowns and 3,695 passing yards, a major slump compared to 2020's 48 touchdowns and 4,299 passing yards, and 2021's 37 touchdowns and 4,115 passing yards. On top of that, he threw 12 interceptions, a total of 3 more than 2020 and 2021's interceptions total combined.
Agreeing to a 3-year, $150 million contract extension in March of 2022, NFL fans expected Rodgers' 2022 slump to be his final season playing, or that he would finish out his contract as a Packer. However, this all changed when Rodgers announced his infamous "darkness retreat." The retreat took place in late February 2023, at Sky Cave in Oregon. ESPN explains that the Sky Cave is a "partially underground, Hobbit-like structure with 300 square feet of space, devoid of light, with a queen bed, a bathroom and a meditation-like mat on the floor." The retreat was for Rodgers to find a "better sense of where he's at in his life," one of these decisions for Rodgers to make was also to figure out whether or not he would be playing in 2023. While the news was laughed at by most NFL fans, Rodgers is no stranger to these retreats, with ESPN explaining, "He has openly discussed his affinity for retreats -- yoga retreats, meditation retreats, silent meditation retreats."
Rodgers told Pat McAfee that he went into the darkness retreat believing his decision would be "90% retiring, 10% playing." NBC Sports reports that Rodgers stated, "When I came out of the darkness, something changed.
"I'm not exactly sure what that was, but something changed. I go back to my phone after five days off of it because your phone’s not on the entire time, there’s no wifi on that hippy mountain. And when I got back to that little shack they have where there's one bar of Wifi, I go back to hundreds of text messages and emails and all different things. I realized that there had been a little bit of a shift. I heard from multiple people that I trust around the leagueー players mostlyー that there was some shopping going on, that (the Packers) were interested in actually moving me at this point."
Seemingly, the first option many saw for Rodgers was to go to the Las Vegas Raiders, where star Pro Bowl wide receiver Davante Adams and Rodgers' former teammate was traded to the previous offseason. Jeff Howe of The Athletic reported via Twitter, "The Raiders did indeed call the Packers to check on QB Aaron Rodgers' availability this offseason, per sources. But when a trade couldn't come together, the Raiders signed Jimmy Garoppolo".
Recently, the New York Jets had become a major player in the Aaron Rodgers sweepstakes but still did not seem as strong a candidate as the Raiders did. Yet the Jets still persisted. In January, they hired fired Broncos head coach and former Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett as their offensive coordinator. A rumor would come out that the Jets hired Hackett to attract Rodgers. However, ESPN reports that, "Rodgers took umbrage with the perception that Hackett was hired by the Jets for the main purpose of recruiting him to the team."
The Jets have been valiant in their recent efforts to attract Rodgers. He met with Jets officials in the past week, in a "four-hour discussion that took place at his home in Malibu." Along with this, rookie cornerback Ahmad "Sauce" Gardner had burnt the "cheesehead" hat he had worn after winning against the Packers last season at Lambeau Field. Gardner would actually burn the hat in a viral video.
A trade to the Jets involving Rodgers seems inevitable for the Packers. Rodgers reportedly gave the Jets organization a "wish-list" of players he wants the Jets to sign in free agency, on March 14. The list included Packers receivers Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb, Packers tight end Mercedes Lewis, and free agent receiver Odell Beckham Jr. ESPN insider Adam Schefter would report through Twitter that the Jets have signed Lazard and were expected to pursue Cobb. Rodgers would later tell Pat McAfee that the news of this list was "ridiculous".
The idea of Aaron Rodgers being in any uniform other than a Packers one is shocking, as he has played 18 seasons with Green Bay, winning 4 MVPS and delivering Green Bay a Super Bowl in 2011. A franchise Packers quarterback leaving for New York is simply history repeating itself, as Brett Favre was traded to the Jets in 2008 after playing 16 years with the Packers and delivering them a Super Bowl. In regards to his time with the Packers, Rodgers told McAfee, "I f---ing love that city. I love that organization and always going to have love for that organization. The facts are right now they want to move on, and now so do I."
It's now up to the Packers to find a suitable trade to send Rodgers to the Jets, a move expected to be made within the next few days. While is it a huge blow for the Packers to lose a proven MVP-winning quarterback, Rodgers is only a couple years away from retirement, and the Packers drafted Rodgers' replacement in 2020 with Jordan Love. As for the Jets, they are taking a gamble on an older quarterback but they had the 2022 Offensive Rookie of the Year in receiver Garrett Wilson and a very great young squad surrounding Rodgers overall. Many blame their woes in 2022 on disappointing quarterback Zach Wilson.
ESPN reports Rodgers told McAfee, "I got to the be the starting quarterback of the Packers for 15 years ... So, I love you, Green Bay. Thank you. I'm as sad as some of you are, but we'll meet again."
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