Getty Quarterback Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers celebrates after a successful two-point conversion against the Chicago Bears during a game at Soldier Field on December 4, 2022 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
The Green Bay Packers have made a monumental decision on the future of their franchise, one of the most storied in NFL history.
According to league insider Trey Wingo, the Packers have finalized a deal to send four-time MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets. Wingo reported the news via Twitter on Monday, March 13, the first day of legal tampering ahead of the new NFL season set to officially begin on March 15.
Hearing Rodgers to the Jets is done. History about to repeat itself between New York and Green Bay. Time is indeed a flat circle
“Hearing Rodgers to the Jets is done. History about to repeat itself between New York and Green Bay. Time is indeed a flat circle,” Wingo wrote.
Wingo’s comment about history repeating is a reference to the trade between the Packers and Jets that sent quarterback Brett Favre to New York 15 years ago.
Conflicting Reports on Rodgers Trade Continue to Persist
GettyQuarterback Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers looks on before a game against the Cleveland Browns at Lambeau Field on December 25, 2021 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
Of course, it wouldn’t be a true Rodgers trade report if there weren’t conflicting details to accompany it.
Just minutes after Wingo took to Twitter to declare that the Rodgers deal is done and simply awaiting an official announcement, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport made a television appearance in which he reported the exact opposite. He subsequently reiterated that report on social media.
“I wish it did. I wish something had happened [between Rodgers and the Jets],” Rapoport tweeted. “But nothing has happened.”
Rapoport’s was only the most recent rebuttal of an NFL Network insider against another source’s claim that the Rodgers-t0-Jets deal framework is complete, and either waiting on official confirmation or on the quarterback himself to sign off on the trade. Rodgers does not possess a no-trade clause, though he could always halt a deal by threatening to retire as soon as a trade is processed, meaning the Jets would give up whatever they agreed to trade for the quarterback and then get nothing from Rodgers in return.
Connor Hughes of SNYtv in New York reported on Saturday that “everything that needs to be done is essentially done in regards to a trade.” He went on to add that “if Rodgers wants to be a Jet, he will be a Jet” and that both sides were simply waiting for Rodgers to make a decision.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network took to Twitter a little more than six hours later to report that the two teams had “not agreed to the framework of an Aaron Rodgers trade.” Instead, Pelissero cited unnamed sources who said that if and when Rodgers decides he wants to join the Jets, then the two sides will come together to work on the details of a trade.
Both Wingo and Hughes are credible news breakers in the NFL business, though Rapoport and Pelissero actually work for the league itself. The professional arrangement of the latter two has the potential to lend itself to problematic scenarios in regards to unbiased objectivity on certain hot-button topics, but it also generally means a high level of access to well-informed team sources and a high degree of certainty on reports dealing with things like big-name trades.
Waiting Game on Rodgers Deal May Hurt Packers and Jets
GettyGreen Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is very close to being traded to the New York Jets, per multiple reports.
Regardless of whether a deal between the Packers and Jets is done and awaiting Rodgers’ approval, or the teams are awaiting Rodgers’ approval before hammering out a deal, one thing is certain: the longer the transaction takes, the worse it is for all parties involved.
With legal tampering now in effect, teams are targeting their free agents of choice and moving on potential additions for the 2023 season and beyond. Because of Rodgers’ historically exorbitant contract, both the Packers and the Jets are somewhat hamstrung on the moves they can make at other positions on their respective rosters until they know what will become of the quarterback and his money.
For instance, there is no reason for Green Bay to move on a backup quarterback for Jordan Love until they know Rodgers won’t be returning. The Jets, meanwhile, can’t afford to go on any sort of spending spree until they know exactly how much cost they will incur (or not incur) based on Rodgers’ decision on his playing future.
Free agent wide receiver Allen Lazard has also said he is waiting to see what Rodgers ultimately decides before he commits to his next team, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.