Aaron Rodgers “Jets” out of Green Bay
April 2, 2023
Green Bay Packers quarterback, Aaron Rodgers, recently announced on the Pat McAfee Show that he would move to New York to play for the Jets. The 39-year-old quarterback has played for Green Bay for 18 years, winning four league MVP awards (the second highest in league history), and shattering over 30 records.
Earlier this month, Rodgers went on a four-day darkness retreat to contemplate the future of his career. During this time, he sat in complete darkness with no people, no phones, no T.V.’s, and no distractions. The goal was to spend four days determining whether he wanted to continue with the Packers, switch teams, or, of course, retire. However, that didn’t exactly happen as he ended the retreat and still didn’t have an answer for over two weeks. So much for the darkness therapy.
Going into the retreat, Rodgers stated on the McAfee Show that he was 90 percent sure he’d be retiring this season. But in the end, his decision was to play for the Jets. Last season, Rodgers was openly anti-vax and one of the biggest critics of the pharmaceutical industry. But, when he finally came out of the darkness, he realized he wanted to work for the billionaire heirs to Johnson & Johnson (one of the few companies that developed a COVID vaccine.)
Rodgers wants to play for the Jets, the Jets want him to play for them, and the Packers are willing to trade him. So, what’s the big delay?
There are many factors that go into this trade. With Rodgers being an all-time great, but also one of the highest-paid players in the league, this is already a difficult decision for the Jets. Add in the fact that he’s already 39 and has stated his desire to retire multiple times in the last couple of months, and it doesn’t make anything easier. Keeping this in mind, the Jets don’t want to surrender their first-round draft pick and the Packers won’t accept anything less.
This is a pretty tough deal, so will either team really go through with it? The answer is yes. The Jets don’t really have another option for a new quarterback and the Packers seem to want to start their younger quarterback, Jordan Love, meaning both teams are relying on this arrangement for the coming season.
This transaction is already hard enough, but to make matters worse, Rodgers comes with a whole list of requests. Although he claims that these aren’t actual demands, and more of preferences, the Jets appear to be taking them pretty seriously. Not only is Rodgers switching to the Jets, but he seems to want about half his team to come with him. Included on his wish list of players are Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb, and Marcedes Lewis from the Packers, and surprisingly Odell Beckham Jr., who is currently a free agent. The Jets have already signed Lazard and seem to be interested in Cobb and Lewis. As for OBJ, who sat out for most of last season due to a major knee injury, the Jets have reached out along with some 10 other teams.
All in all, the trade for Rodgers probably won’t be finalized for a while, with all the surrounding discrepancies. However, once it does he’ll finally be out of Green Bay, opening up the possibility for the Bears to ultimately win against them.