After weeks of challenging and grinding negotiations, an Aaron Rodgers trade was agreed to on Monday afternoon. The New York Jets and Green Bay Packers were able to compromise on a deal a few days before the 2023 NFL Draft. While both teams seem to have gotten what they wanted from the trade, a few NFL executives reading the trade details are unimpressed with the outcome.
The Aaron Rodgers trade makes the Jets a contender
The Jets got their quarterback. Head coach Robert Saleh wanted a veteran, and a 39-year-old, four-time NFL MVP, and Super Bowl champion quarterback is exactly the type of talented arm that can lead Saleh’s Jets to the playoffs. The Packers, who are moving on to Jordan Love under center, were able to get meaningful draft picks and renegotiate a salary for a player they weren’t planning to start again.
The Jets had to give up a lot of concessions to make the Aaron Rodgers trade happen. Reports came out a couple of weeks ago that Jets owner Woody Johnson was nervous about giving up too much in a deal after Rodgers said on the Pat McAfee Show he felt “90 percent” retired going into the offseason.
With no viable quarterback in 2023, Johnson’s team needed the trade to happen, and the Jets will likely up a first-round pick in 2024 to go with a second-round pick on Friday. That’s a risk for a team that doesn’t have a long-term quarterback and will need to give a payday to playmakers on their defense.
Executives aren’t sure about the Aaron Rodgers trade
According to Jeff Howe with The Athletic, several coaches and executives he spoke to after the trade had differing opinions on the outcome of the trade. Most believe a healthy and motivated Rodgers makes the Jets a contender. But two executives think the Jets ultimately were screwed in the deal. How quoted one executive who thought the team “gave up too much.” Another is worried Rodgers might have a weak stomach next season in New York:
“(Rodgers is a) descending player who didn’t want to be (with the Packers) and will probably retire this year if things don’t go well,” another executive said. “I could see this blowing up in the Jets’ faces.”
The panel Howe spoke to thought the Packers won the Aaron Rodgers trade. But that doesn’t mean the Packers will be better than the Jets next season. The Packers will use the draft capital to draft quality players to rebuild their team as they sober up from the spending binge they went on in their last championship window with Rodgers.
The bet the Jets are making is a Super Bowl or bust. And it looks much like the one general manager Brian Gutekunst made when he extended Rodgers last offseason. Will the outcome be different this time?
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