UPDATED 7/26, 1:05 p.m. ET: It looks like Aaron Rodgers is intending to suit up for Green Bay this year.
“Aaron Rodgers has indicated to people close to him that he does plan to play for GB this season, sources say,” writes NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport. “That is the expectation. Many factors at play, but with GM Brian Gutekunst saying he is ‘hopeful’ for a positive outcome, there is a glimmer of optimism.”
See original story below.
Aaron Rodgers might be done with the Green Bay Packers. At least that’s what Vegas thinks.
According to ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio, “multiple sports books reportedly believe Aaron Rodgers will be retiring next week,” which has been reflected in the Packers’ over-under win total.
A previous report that came out during the NFL Draft in late April pegged Rodgers as being “so disgruntled” with the Packers that he had told some people within the organization, the only one he’s played for since coming into the league in 2005, that he did not want to return for the 2021 season:
Other details of that report, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, included Rodgers and the Packers being in a “stand-off” to see which side would blink first. It was also reported that the 49ers made a trade offer to the Pack, but that Green Bay said there was a “zero percent chance” it would deal the QB. Commentary that added to that included Jay Glazer saying Rodgers is “pretty strongly convinced he didn’t want to return to Green Bay,” and Trey Wingo saying that the team told Rodgers they’d trade him before backing off on that idea.
Later in the offseason it was said by Schefter that Rodgers turned down a two-year contract extension from Green Bay that would’ve extended his current run with the team to five more seasons:
In 2020, Rodgers led the NFL in completion percentage (70.7), QB rating (121.5), and touchdown passes (48). He also threw only 5 interceptions and helmed a Green Bay team that got the 1-seed off a 13-3 record. It was the seventh time in the last 10 years that the Packers won the NFC North, all of which were seasons where Rodgers started a majority (in most cases all) of the team’s games.
He also won the MVP for the third time in his career.
In the playoffs the Packers easily won a home-game against the Rams, then lost 31-26 to Tom Brady and the Bucs in the NFC Championship. Though it doesn’t tell the whole story, notable plays from that loss include an inexplicable end-of-the-half 39-yard touchdown pass from Brady to wide receiver Scotty Miller that gave Tampa a two-score lead heading into the locker room, and a weird 4th down call with 2:09 left in the game that resulted in the Packers kicking a field goal from the 8-yard line instead of trying to score and convert the 2-pt conversion to tie. The Packers never got the ball back, and Rodgers got kind of locked up (though handled it well) when a contestant caught him off-guard by bringing it up during his stint as Jeopardy! host.
