It would have made sense for the Packers to move on from Aaron Rodgers after last season’s disappointing finish and clear the decks for the future. In the end, bringing back the defending two-time MVP for one last run was too tempting.
Unfortunately for Green Bay, the plan didn’t work. The Packers weren’t able to build an offense around Rodgers that was talented enough or deep enough to make another run. A midseason swoon ultimately was too much to overcome. And even if the Packers hadn’t choked away a Week 18 chance to get into the playoffs, it’s hard to imagine that team was going to make a deep run in the postseason.
Now, the Packers — and Rodgers — find themselves at another crossroads. Rodgers already has been noncommittal about his playing future, but retirement would be walking away from $100 million guaranteed. Rodgers doesn’t need the money, at least not relative to just about everyone on the planet, but that is a huge chunk of change. If he does opt to play, though, it has become increasingly possible he’s doing so somewhere other than Green Bay.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter revealed Sunday it’s a “real possibility” the Packers trade Rodgers this offseason. Schefter gave a little more insight into “one of the central storylines” of the offseason Sunday on ESPN.
“There’s a real possibility that both sides here are going to be thinking about him being traded,” Schefter said. “You look at the Packers’ cap situation, and they are one of the teams that are over the salary cap. They’ve gotta find somewhere. By the way, they’re $15 million over the salary cap. If they trade Rodgers this offseason, they would clear out $16 million.
“Aside from the math, there’s just a common-sense standpoint of this. He, for a while, has had thoughts about leaving. This goes back a couple of years. The Packers have had thoughts about moving on from him. That’s gone on for a while. At some point in time, they might want to get a look at Jordan Love. There are salary cap considerations. I think there are going to be moments this offseason when they’re going to be talking to teams to see if it’s worth it, moving ahead and trade Aaron Rodgers.”
Rodgers unsurprisingly doesn’t want to be part of a rebuild and has made that point clear already. He’s not the only decision the Packers have to make, either. In fact, a trio of Green Bay pass-catchers are free agents: Allen Lazard, Randall Cobb and Robert Tonyan. Those three are arguably Rodgers’ favorite targets, so losing any of them — let alone all three — might be enough for Rodgers to seek a new start.
Rodgers appeared to take a step back in 2022, but he’s still capable of leading a veteran-laden offense to the playoffs. As such, there should be a decent market for his services if he and the Packers decide a trade is best. The early lean from oddsmakers is that Rodgers is wearing the “G” on his helmet again in 2023, but if they move on, the Jets, Raiders, 49ers and even the Patriots are early favorites to land him.
