Ever since the beginning of the 2022 voluntary team activities, Green Bay Packers fans have wondered if Aaron Rodgers was really all bought in for the regular season. After his poor play last year, many took that as confirmation that he had checked out. Others, however, blamed his down year on his broken thumb.
There are valid points on both sides, to be sure. However, it appears that Rodgers’ new team, the New York Jets, are of the opinion that Rodgers was not engaged for his last season in Green Bay. Furthermore, they expect he will play better for them because he has bought into what they are doing.
The New York Jets Believe Aaron Rodgers Is More Engaged with Them than He Was with the Green Bay Packers
While appearing on the Slow News Day podcast with Kevin Clark of The Ringer, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated revealed that the Jets believe Rodgers will bounce back from his poor 2022 showing. The reason they gave him was because he actually cares this year, whereas last year he did not:
“They think they’re getting a different player than the Packers got last year, because of the level of engagement.
“Like they feel like if Rodgers had been around [the Packers] in April and May and June it would have made a difference and is part of the reason why you didn’t see as much from those guys until later in the season. It was because he wasn’t there.
“And so like, I think the early signs are good now, whether or not you know he is physically what he was, all that different stuff remains to be seen. But the level of engagement was the difference in Rodgers last year too.”
Well, there it is. Rodgers made no secret that he signed at three-year $150 million contract because he thought Davante Adams was still going to be around. However, when Adams demanded (and was given) a trade, Rodgers lost his most trusted target.
Of course, the beginning of the end was when the Packers decided to draft Jordan Love with their first round pick in 2020. Since that moment, it was a long, downward spiral for Rodgers and the organization. 2022 was where it all hit rock bottom.
Now, Rodgers is feeling rejuvenated and the Packers have their young quarterback, plus some nice young offensive weapons (not to mention the Jets’ first round pick next year if Rodgers plays 65% of their snaps). It was a win-win for both parties, but perhaps not the fans who watched it all go down.
In any case, Rodgers will eventually retire and have number retired by the Packers, and this whole fiasco will be but a blip on his overall legacy in Green Bay.
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1 Comment
The Packers brass do not know what to do with or treat talent. It’s evident in the way they disrespect quarterbacks and wide receivers. I have been a Packers fan for over fifty years and I am ashamed of the way they treat players.