Aaron Rodgersā relationship with Green Bay has been through all kinds of iterations; a triumphant tale, a fractured rollercoaster, a (Jordan) Love affair and, according to the MVP quarterback himself, a ābeautiful mystery.ā So here we are, with Rodgers at age 37, coming off one of the finest seasons of his career, yet with the Packers a decade removed and counting from their last trip to a Super Bowl. And, suddenly, with another puzzle surrounding how much of a future this QB-team pairing has left in it. It is a football marriage that doesnāt play out in the usual ways. It is a dance. Mostly, Rodgers is its choreographer, leading the organization and the fervent Green Bay fan base through a series of hot-stepping twizzles that often leave everyone wondering what the heck is really happening. Many of his most revealing comments come from his regular appearances on the Pat McAfee podcast, which adds a layer of intrigue to the entire process, given that McAfeeās show is designed to be light-hearted, and Rodgersā remarks can be vague, making sure no one is ever quite certain if heās saying what it seems like heās saying. Itās the offseason, so thereās not even any of that to parse through at the moment. Thereās just, for the inquisitive fan, attempts to decipher the maze of action ā or inaction ā this time related to the unique delicacies of the salary cap. Ā A fresh spate of speculation and wondering sparked up this week, and it all began when it was widely reported that the team paid Rodgers a bonus that he was due. Yep, thatās it. In theory. āSometimes itās frustrating to be a sports fan in 2021,āĀ FS1ās Nick Wright said on First Things First. ā(You) have to worry about dead money and cap charges, but if you want to understand the Aaron Rodgers story ā thatās what this is about.ā Here is where it gets a little convoluted, so just hold tight and weāll get through it together. In 2021, Rodgers is due to make $21.5 million from Green Bay ā a lower figure than you might expect because he took a large chunk of his four-year, $134 million extension in 2018 at the front end. Of that number for this season, $14.7 million comes in salary, with $6.8 million allocated as a roster bonus, which is the part the Packers just paid. Had the team, instead of paying it out, been able to negotiate a restructuring that would give Rodgers the same amount of income ā like happens so often around the league – they could have saved significant room under the salary cap, up to $16.34 million if two voidable years were added. Ā So why would they not? Theyāre not saying, but itās certainly got people talking. āIf your attitude is, weāre all-in on Aaron Rodgers and trying to make it happen while heās here, that restructure should have already been done,āĀ NFL Networkās Mike Silver, who is very tight with Rodgers, said. However, a full restructure of Rodgers would create a drastic bump in dead money cost, more than $28 million, in the event the team wanted to trade him after upcoming season. This is where the Love factor comes into play. Love, selected 26th in the 2020 NFL Draft (much to Rodgersā chagrin), was brought in for a reason ā the Packers thought he was their QB of the future. In 2022, heād be heading into his third season, following two years of learning behind Rodgers. Perhaps that was the plan all along. Ā āWhy pass up easy cap savings that are gone now?āĀ wrote the Green Bay Press Gazetteās Pete Dougherty. āIs it because theyāre still working through the details that will give Rodgers certainty heāll be their quarterback in 2022? Or are they hedging their bets and keeping as much of his money as possible off future caps because they might want to turn to Love as early as 2022? āFor that matter, does Rodgers even want to come back to the Packers this year without some assurance about ā22 or beyond?ā Lots of questions, and the people who know the answers, well, theyāre not saying. āRodgers is showing no signs of slowing down,āĀ former All-Pro Brandon Marshall said. āThis dude is coming off an MVP year. Why are we having this conversation right now? I donāt know if it is from Aaronās side or the organizationās side. There always seems to be some kind of discontent. Why canāt you guys get this right?ā Ā Thatās the most mysterious part of it. Thereās a lot going on, you can be sure of it. What should be one of the most stable quarterback situations in the league is anything but. It is, as it always seems to be, a struggle for leverage and position. It is hard to imagine Rodgers playing anywhere else and it is hard to imagine the Packers with someone else under center. Not long ago, we said the same about Tom Brady. Football moves rapidly, and, in certain situations, in the weirdest ways. Rodgers has been with the Packers for 16 years and itās still, after all this time, a dance. And the dance partners, at least right now, are out of step. Ā Hereās what others have said … Emmanuel Acho, First Things First:Ā āI think the Packers are going to have to choose between the prideful wrong answer or the humble right answer. The humble, right answer would be to say, ‘You know what? I made a mistake. We made a mistake. We shouldn’t have drafted Jordan Love as soon, as quickly or as early as we did, because Aaron Rodgers is still good.ā Desmond Howard, College Game Day:Ā āI think this may be the last season that we see of Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. He doesn’t have a problem with beefs. … Aaron Rodgers is ice cold, man. So, if the Packers keep playing with him like this, and if it’s because of them that the contract was not restructured, I believe that this will be his last season.ā Mina Kimes, ESPN:Ā āI view it as strange given he’s coming off an MVP season. You see teams in the NFC like the Rams or the Bucs going all in on this season restructuring contracts … pushing money down the road to win. Meanwhile, Green Bay has a Super Bowl caliber quarterback, but isn’t really doing much to improve their roster around him. They could do that if they restructured his contract. I’d be frustrated if I was Rodgers. There’s no way to read that other than Green Bay wants to keep their options open down the road.ā Sarah Spain, ESPN:Ā āEven the captain of the boat stuck in the Suez thinks the Packers are being steered wrong here. It doesn’t make any sense. You’ve got a team that can compete and win now … an aging quarterback who is probably about three years younger than he really is because of the time he sat early who’s got a couple more years. He was just MVP. But instead you’re already trying to figure out how you’re not tied to him too long. It makes sense why Aaron Rodgers would want them to have cap hits later on because then it’s not that easy for them to dispatch him and move on. None of this makes sense.ā |
