So, Did Aaron Rodgers Essentially Leave the Division?
All offseason, the talk for the Green Bay Packers will focus on their quarterback position and what they will do with Aaron Rodgers. While the Minnesota Vikings must decide what to do with Kirk Cousins, Kevin O’Connell’s team may not see Rodgers in the division anymore when the regular season begins.
There is a massive price tag for Green Bay when it comes to Rodgers. If he is going to return under center for the Packers this season, they’ll need to do some gymnastics with his cap number. It’s also likely that he could be traded, and the New York Jets have emerged as a suitor.
So, Did Aaron Rodgers Essentially Leave the Division?
With the Packers suggesting they want at least two first-round picks for their future Hall of Famer, New York was quick to suggest they would accommodate. On Thursday, the Jets also named Nathaniel Hackett their offensive coordinator, which certainly doesn’t slow down the train of thought about placing him with the Jets.
Although New York may not have watched Hackett’s horrible offense in Denver this year with Russell Wilson under center, they know he orchestrated the Green Bay gameplans when Aaron Rodgers won MVP awards in 2020 and 2021. The four-time MVP clearly had a good rapport with Hackett, and bringing him in could help ease an acclimation period with the Jets.
Rodgers has been relatively quiet regarding what he will do next season. At 39 years old, he’s certainly towards the tail end of his career, but it’s also evident that more is left in the tank. Tom Brady is currently playing well into his forties, and plenty of other superstar quarterbacks have accomplished a similar feat.
It would be somewhat comical to see Rodgers go to the Jets, just as his predecessor Brett Favre did. After leaving the Packers, Favre spent a season with New York, going 9-7, before finishing his career with Minnesota. Rodgers is a year older than Favre was when he changed teams, but the parallels are too similar to ignore. Maybe Rodgers winds up as Cousins’ replacement in 2024, but we should hope he’s not committing fraud a handful of years down the line.
It would certainly be beneficial for Minnesota to see a talented quarterback leave the division. We haven’t seen enough from Jordan Love yet to decide whether he can be a good starting quarterback, but the likelihood that he competes at the level of Rodgers seems far-fetched. Minnesota will have plenty of work to do on their own as they revamp the defense this offseason, but playing a lesser quarterback twice a year is certainly something they would sign up for.
Of course, as has always been the case with Rodgers and his unpredictability, we may see him just return to Green Bay and make all of this a moot point anyways. If we have learned anything over the past few years, the Packers quarterback likes to keep people guessing and doesn’t mind the attention. It’s a wait-and-see game for now.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes weekly for Twins Daily. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.
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