Could the New York Jets pull off a trade for Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers without even parting with a coveted first-round pick? One NFL insider believes it to be the case.
When asked what the Jets would have to give up to land the multi-time NFL MVP, Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer expressed how he believes it shouldn't take a draft haul. Breer wrote New York's second-rounder in April's draft (No. 43) and a conditional 2025 selection could get it done, with the conditions tied to Rodgers' level of play in 2023 and whether or not the signal-caller returns in 2024.
"I might be wrong, but based on what I know, I don't think the Jets will have to give up this year's first-round pick," Breer wrote Wednesday.
"And there's a valuable lesson in that, in the end, it may not even cost the Jets a first-round pick to get Aaron Rodgers," he said.
Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst doesn't have much leverage in the potential trade scenario. The biggest reason? Rodgers' contract. As Breer noted, the more a team will have to pay the player, the less said team is going to want to give up to acquire the player. And the lack of future commitment Rodgers has displayed during recent years in Green Bay also hinders the organization.
Nevertheless, given that Russell Wilson was traded to the Denver Broncos for three players and five draft picks, including two first-rounders one year ago, the speculated return for Rodgers might catch some by surprise. Rodgers' former receiver Davante Adams fetched a first-rounder last offseason, too, and that wasn't even a quarterback-related trade.
As it relates to the Jets, New York continues to be viewed as the most likely landing spot for Rodgers. The organization sent a contingent of team officials to meet with Rodgers on Tuesday, a conversation he clearly agreed to have.
Now that we have a better idea of what it would take for Gang Green to acquire Rodgers, and already having known their willingness to pay him, it's getting easier to envision Rodgers leaving Lambeau Field and heading to the Meadowlands.
