It is a new calendar year, but the Green Bay Packers are still in the 2021 season. With two games remaining, they have a chance to lock up the NFC’s top seed for the second year in a row. The 2021 calendar year did not bring the Super Bowl glory the team and its fans had hoped. Instead, it brought offseason drama, a slew of injuries, and questions about the future. Here, we give our five bold predictions of what will happen with the Packers in 2022.
Bold Prediction #1- The Green Bay Packers Will Win the Super Bowl
The Green Bay Packers have already clinched a playoff berth. In fact, they have already clinched their division for the third straight season. Getting to the playoffs, though, is only one step in the process. Next, they actually need to do what they have not been able to do for so long: win the big games.
The AFC is not looking very impressive, though the Chiefs seem to have finally figured it out and the Dolphins have won seven straight games (after losing seven straight). In the NFC, the Packers’ main competition will be the Dallas Cowboys and the defending champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If the Packers are able to secure home field advantage, they will certainly have a major advantage over those two NFC teams. Of course, Green Bay had home field advantage last season and it did not make a difference in the end.
That all being said, the Green Bay Packers have a lot riding on this season being the one that they finally bring home a fifth Lombardi Trophy. When the 2022 salary cap was announced, it was clear that this Packers team was not going to be together for the long term. Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams even hinted that this season was the Last Dance for them as teammates. They want to win together, and we think they are going to win it all together.
Bold Prediction #2- Aaron Rodgers Will Sign an Extension with the Green Bay Packers
With the Super Bowl won, Aaron Rodgers will decide to sign a contract extension with the Green Bay Packers. This will ensure that he fulfills his desire to play his entire career with the Packers. Having already broken Brett Favre’s franchise record for touchdown passes, this contract will allow him to also break any other franchise record he does not hold for passing (except interceptions).
If Aaron Rodgers is to have a competitive team with him in Green Bay, he needs this extension. Next season, his current deal carries a cap hit of more than $43 million. Given the 2022 salary cap hell that the Packers are facing, it is imperative that this number comes down. Russ Ball and Brian Gutekunst will work their magic, Aaron Rodgers will sign his deal, and the drama of 2021 will be a distant memory.
Bold Prediction #3- Jordan Love Will Be Traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers
No one expected the Green Bay Packers to select Jordan Love in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Aaron Rodgers, especially. However, not many expected Rodgers to return to MVP form following down 2018 and 2019 seasons. Of course, as Rodgers himself said, down years for him are career years for most other quarterbacks. That being said, with an extension with Rodgers done, the most sensible thing for the Packers to do with Jordan Love is to trade him.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are both an ironic and perfect destination for Jordan Love. The irony lies in the fact that many have speculated that Aaron Rodgers will be traded to the Steelers. In fact, some on social media have even started to post pictures of Rodgers in a Steelers uniform.
The perfection of the scenario that would send Jordan Love to Pittsburgh instead is the fact that Ben Roethlisberger is retiring after this season. The Steelers have not planned well for his departure and do not have a suitable replacement on their roster. The quarterback class in this year’s NFL Draft is not stacked with great talent either. Jordan Love, though, is a former first round pick and has spent two years studying under Aaron Rodgers. The Packers could send Love to the Steelers for a draft pick and elevate Kurt Benkert to be their backup quarterback.
Bold Prediction #4- Matt LaFleur Will Get a Contract Extension
When the Green Bay Packers hired Matt LaFleur in 2019, he received a four-year contract with a team option for a fifth year. All LaFleur has done since coming to the Packers is win. Under his leadership, the Packers have won at least 12 games in each of his seasons as coach (they currently are 12-3 as of this writing). Despite losing back-to-back NFC Championship Games, the fact that they even got that far is a testament to how great of a coach LaFleur is.
2022 will be the last guaranteed year of his contract. It should be a foregone conclusion that the Green Bay Packers organization would pick up his fifth-year option. However, they also should want to ensure that he is in Green Bay for the long haul. A contract extension for another four years will probably be signed sometime this year.
Bold Prediction #5- The Green Bay Packers Will Clinch the NFC North Again Before 2022 Is Over
The Green Bay Packers own the NFC North. Since the divisions were realigned in 2002, the Packers have claimed the division crown 12 times. There have been three instances in which they were Division Champions for at least three consecutive years (2002-2004, 2011-2014, 2019-2021). This year, as mentioned previously, the Packers were able to clinch the division before 2021 was even over.
With Aaron Rodgers back on a new deal in 2022, there is little reason to believe that the Packers will not win the division again next year. Additionally, they should win it in convincing fashion once again. The Detroit Lions are, well, the Lions. The Chicago Bears are likely going to be heading into 2022 with a new general manager, new head coach, and no first round picks. The Minnesota Vikings signed Kirk Cousins to a monster contract. It is fully guaranteed and has a $45 million cap hit next year. The likelihood of any of these teams improving enough to overtake the Packers is not high for 2022. We predict the Packers will clinch by Week 15 next season.
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