Aaron Rodgers wants out of Green Bay. That much has been established.
The 37-year-old quarterback was upset last year when the Packers drafted Jordan Love in the first round. Not only was that an obvious sign the Packers thought Rodgers’ career was winding down, but taking a quarterback prevented them from helping the team add first-round talent to other positions.
Rodgers gave obvious signs as soon as the season ended that he wasn’t happy with Green Bay. There was some thinking that he was angling for a new contract.
So what transpired that led up to Thursday’s report that Rodgers wants out? NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport says Rodgers’ agent went to Green Bay. Rodgers wanted a contract extension, but Green Bay just wanted to restructure his current deal, which runs through 2023. When word got out that Rodgers wasn’t happy, teams came calling. The Packers then offered Rodgers an extension, but nothing happened.
Over the last month, Aaron Rodgers had his agent Dave Dunn fly out to Green Bay for several days of meetings to work through the situation. Rodgers refused a restructure. Wanted an extension. Teams called knowing he wasn’t happy. GB rebuffed them. Offered an extension. No deal.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 29, 2021
And that leads us to Thursday, when news leaked that Rodgers wants out.
Rodgers just won NFL MVP and seems to have at least a few good years left in him. The Packers probably had some reasonable concerns about committing so much money to him given Rodgers’ age. Now it seems he is ready to force his way out. Keep in mind that the Packers reportedly have felt limited by Rodgers’ contract.
Rodgers has three years left on his contract after signing a 4-year extension in 2018. He has a $37 million cap hit in 2021 and would cost the team $38 million in dead cap money if cut. His cap hit is nearly $40 million in 2022, though his dead cap money drops to $17 million, which is a more manageable amount of money if the Packers wanted to move on from him. Rodgers is taking up around 20 percent of the $182 million salary cap in 2021.
