Aaron Rodgers was all set to join the New York Jets when his trade request was made public, but he is still a Packer weeks later. So what’s going on? After all the controversy, will Rodgers still play for the Packers?
The Green Bay Packers had a really bad season last year. They missed the playoffs, finished with an 8-9 record, and fell below.500 for the first time since Rodgers’ injury-plagued 2018 campaign.
The team let go of several important players, including All-Pro Davante Adams, who guided the Packers to a 13-3 record and the top seed in the NFC the previous season. Rodgers has frequently expressed his dissatisfaction with the Packers organization in the past, and this year it eventually led to a trade demand.
Even while it had long been rumored that the Jets would be interested in Rodgers should he become available, Rodgers specifically mentioned them as his favorite landing location. We don’t know when an agreement will be reached between the two parties, but one hasn’t been reached yet.
The #Packers and #Jets haven't been communicating about an Aaron Rodgers trade for weeks, per @AdamSchefter
"Both sides now appear to be dug in."
"My understanding is there hasn't been a whole lot of conversation, if any, over the last couple of weeks."https://t.co/cApmEDIAmC
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) April 12, 2023
Will Aaron Rodgers End up Staying in Green Bay?
What then is stopping the deal? The Packers are aware of Rodgers‘ desire to quit. The Jets are aware that they are his favored place to land.
Why has nothing occurred as of yet? Well, there are a few explanations for the significant delay in this deal.
One of the earliest worries centered on Rodgers’ claim that he was 90% certain he would retire. The Jets needed extra assurance for this claim because they didn’t want to be locked into Rodgers’ final season with them and be underpaid.
The Packers may also be waiting until beyond the June 1st deadline to deal Rodgers since, according to his contract, they won’t save money unless they do it after that date. Both sides are not in a great hurry, and everyone is optimistic that a solution will be reached.
Both current Packer David Bakhtiari and former Packer Charles Woodson agreed that the Packers are approaching a rebuild.
Will Rodgers Make the Jets a Super Bowl Contender?
How effective the Jets will be once Rodgers arrives is difficult to predict. They have a defense that can compete in the Super Bowl, and they have a group of young receivers who could work well with Rodgers.
They lack a lot of experience, though, in terms of playing winning football.
In some ways, the circumstance is identical to Brady signing with Tampa Bay. It is all too common for an experienced quarterback coming off a bad season to join a young, promising club that is having quarterback issues.
The Jets’ current quarterback, Rodgers, would be the best they’ve had in recent memory—possibly even back to Brett Favre.
Is Rodgers up to the task, though? Can the roster as a whole compensate for his presence? Time will only tell.
