The Green Bay Packers and New York Jets finally agreed to an Aaron Rodgers trade. New York is receiving Rodgers, the 15th overall pick, and a fifth round pick in this year’s draft. Green Bay is receiving the 13th overall pick, a second round pick, a sixth round pick, and a 2024 conditional second round pick. If Rodgers plays 65% of the snaps in 2023, that second round pick will become a first round selection. For the second year in a row, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst has gotten high picks for a player that was never going to be on his team (Davante Adams was traded for a first and second round pick last season).
It was a great haul for Green Bay, but known Packers hater Mike Florio is not happy. In a recent article, he blasts the Jets for choosing not to use the leverage that he believed they had.
The Green Bay Packers Fleeced the New York Jets in the Aaron Rodgers Trade
In his article, Florio wrote:
“Several weeks ago, we argued that the Jets should act like they’re from New York/New Jersey. Instead, they did a deal that wouldn’t have even qualified for a set of steak knives in Glengarry Glen Ross.
“Sorry, Jets fans, but your favorite team got fleeced. They had leverage. They just chose not to use it.
“They chose not to say to the Packers, ‘This guy is never playing for you again. What are you going to do, pay him $60 million to sit on the bench? We’re in no hurry. He knows the offense. He doesn’t like to participate in the offseason anyway. We can do the deal at the start of training camp. We can do it at the start of the regular season, if need be.’
“But, hey, at least the Packers are sending the Jets a 2023 fifth-round pick in exchange for a 2023 sixth-round pick. As if that balances it all out.
“It doesn’t. Not even close. Rodgers was never going to play for the Packers, ever again. The Packers got a two, a future one (most likely), and an upgraded first-round pick this year — with no protection to the Jets if Rodgers retreats to a dark room with a pot of ayahuasca and decides to retire after the 2023 season.”
Wow. Someone clearly is not happy with this trade. The fact of the matter is that Florio was mistaken in his perception of the Jets’ leverage. As much as he wants to believe they had all the leverage, he was wrong. What it comes down to is this: the Packers have had their quarterback for 2023 in Jordan Love. The Jets did not. Unless they were willing to roll with Zach Wilson again, destroy their public image, and alienate their fanbase. This is not even considering what it would have done to the players who were hyped about adding a future Hall of Famer. No, Gutekunst and the Packers held all the cards from Day One, and they knew it.
The reality of the situation is that the Jets handed the Packers leverage throughout the entire process. From Rodgers admitting publicly that he was committed to them, to the hiring of Nathaniel Hackett, to the signing of Allen Lazard, to Joe Douglas guaranteeing the deal would get done on numerous occasions, they backed themselves into a corner. Gutekunst went for the knockout blow and he connected.
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