An Aaron Rodgers trade between the Green Bay Packers and New York Jets is bound to happen. We are now one month removed from Rodgers appearing on The Pat McAfee Show to tell the world that he was committed to playing in 2023 (for the Jets). Of course, there were trade rumors circulating long before that interview. However, it cemented the fact that the Packers really were moving on from their future Hall of Fame quarterback. In the month that has followed, trade packages galore have been presented and debated on social media, podcasts, ESPN, and, I assume, among friends who actually talk to each other in person.
Which Team Will Blink First in the Aaron Rodgers Trade Talks?
The problem is that we are a month out from Rodgers’ admission and there is still no trade. Per reports, that same interview in which Rodgers publicly voiced his intentions to play for the Jets also caused Woody Johnson, the franchise’s owner, to balk a bit. Even though he intends to play in 2023, Rodgers admitted that he was 90% retired when he entered his darkness retreat. All of a sudden, Johnson was not so sure he would have the four-time MVP for more than one year, and that complicated the talks.
At some point, one side is going to have to blink, and Joseph Zucker of Bleacher Report believes it has to be the Jets:
“At this point, it’s tough to see any path back for Rodgers and the Packers. The team needs to move on to Jordan Love as its starting quarterback, and the longer this drags on the more it risks Rodgers simply retiring and leaving them totally empty-handed after his departure.
“The Jets, meanwhile, don’t really have a backup plan if this trade falls through. The free-agent market is barren at this point, and pivoting to a deal for Lamar Jackson is easier said than done.
“The worst-case scenario is arguably worse for New York than it is for Green Bay because it creates a far bigger disruption for the former in the short term. The Packers are facing a transitional period regardless of what happens. If all of this comes to nothing, the Jets are suddenly a franchise with Super Bowl aspirations that’s starting Zach Wilson at quarterback again.”
The fact of the matter is that Jordan Love will be the Packers’ starting quarterback in 2023. Even current Packers players are already talking about Rodgers as if he were already a Jet. It is also true that New York has no backup plan, unless they are okay with Zach Wilson leading that offense.
Of course, there are other things the Jets have done and said this offseason that indicate they are in deep:
- Hiring Nathaniel Hackett as offensive coordinator
- Signing Allen Lazard to a four-year $44 million contract
- Sauce Gardner burning the cheesehead he wore at Lambeau in a video with other Jets players begging Rodgers to come play with them
- All the times general manager Joe Douglas has guaranteed (publicly) that they would acquire Rodgers
The fact of the matter is that if the Jets end up losing out on Aaron Rodgers, they are in for a public relations nightmare of unprecedented scales.
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