Aaron Rodgers has some say as to where he plays in 2023
Aaron Rodgers is taking some time after the season to ponder his options for the 2023 season. He very well could retire, play for the Packers, or be traded to a team he wants to go to. One might speculate Rodgers has the final say on coming back to the Packers because of his contract. However, the truth is more complicated than that.
According to a new report by Pete Dougherty of The Green Bay Press-Gazette, the Packers own serious leverage on the quarterback’s future plans. Dougherty points out in the piece that if the Packers want Jordan Love to play next season, they could make life tough on Rodgers if he forced his way back on Green Bay’s roster by refusing any potential trade. That is because the team can thrust him into a rebuilding situation that Rodgers doesn’t want to be a part of at 39 years of age.
“But the Packers have leverage, too. Unless they badly want him back, they can go about building their roster as they see fit, rather than meeting any conditions Rodgers might set.
For instance, Rodgers named to McAfee some older veterans he’d like to see the team retain: Randall Cobb, Robert Tonyan, David Bakhtiari and Marcedes Lewis. But if Gutekunst is OK with Rodgers not returning, then Rodgers’ reaction is no concern when the GM decides who among that group stays or goes.”
Is it time to rebuild?
Aaron Rodgers is of the belief that the Packers are a couple of players away from competing for a championship. In the report, Dougherty seems to disagree, thinking that Rodgers’ odds of carrying a salary cap-thin team are dissipating each season Rodgers ages past his prime. The results of the past few seasons back up his case.
General manager Brian Gutekunst and head coach Matt LaFleur could try and transition the youthful team into a group that can be successful under former first-round pick Jordan Love. Why continue to stretch cap space for a team that appears to be on the decline?
It’s a valid argument. However, the Packers have been close in the playoffs the previous few years. There’s exciting young talent on the Packers now. If the team were to go out and get a wide receiver like DeAndre Hopkins, one could envision the Packers having fortune favor them in the playoffs one more time in Rodgers’ career in Green Bay.
