The Green Bay Packers chose to release Jordy Nelson earlier this month after he spent the first 10 years of his career with the team, and there have been rumblings that the team did not treat him well on his way out the door. Now, Nelson has seemingly confirmed that.
Nelson opened up a bit about the trade on Monday, and he told ESPN Milwaukee that he was more bothered by the way the Packers went about releasing him than the actual decision.
“I think the hurt part was the unwillingness to try to make it work,” Nelson said, per ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. “Then again, it’s a business and they have to do what they think is best.”
Nelson said he got the impression that Green Bay’s desire to move on from him was about more than just money, and he decided to not entertain whatever pay cut they may have proposed. At age 32, he now has a chance to prove with the Oakland Raiders that he still has plenty left in the tank. When asked if he is motivated to prove the Packers wrong, Nelson said he is looking at it a slightly different way.
“I take it the other way and try to prove the Raiders right [for signing him],” he said.
Nelson has been Aaron Rodgers’ favorite target for several years now, and he’s just two seasons removed from catching nearly 100 passes and scoring 14 touchdowns. We have already been given the indication that Rodgers may not be pleased about some of the moves the Packers have made, and cutting Nelson could be part of the issue.
With Jon Gruden calling the shots on offense in Oakland, Nelson should have plenty of opportunities in 2018 if he’s healthy.
