After more than a month-long standoff, the Green Bay Packers now appear positioned to dictate the terms of a trade sending quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets.
The sticking point has been what Green Bay is asking for in return for Rodgers, specifically a first-round pick in either 2023 or 2024. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler explained the holdup on a Saturday, April 15 edition of SportsCenter.
“[The Packers want] a premium package of draft picks in exchange for [Rodgers], presumably over multiple years,” Fowler reported. “The Jets have just been unwilling at this point to go that far.”
New York has held strong in part on the advice of the QB himself. Rodgers has advised the Jets not to sacrifice their top pick (No. 13 overall) later this month and instead use that selection to address a potential issue at left tackle.
But like every other intensely negotiated NFL trade in history, there must come a breaking point where one team caves and the other seizes on the opportunity. Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report on Monday laid out a viable scenario in which the Jets buckle and forfeit their first-round pick this season to close the deal for Rodgers.
Packers Will Try to Bully Jets Into Offering First-Round Pick
GettyGreen Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is still waiting to be traded.
The Jets could go several ways at No. 13 if they hold onto the pick, though it appears clear that Rodgers wants the team to draft a tackle.
ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay both project New York to select an offensive lineman in the first round via their most recent mock drafts, though each has at least one tackle coming off the board before the Jets select. Kiper has two tackles drafted by that point.
In Knox’s scenario, the Jets are less than fully enamored with their options at No. 13 and value bringing Rodgers into the fold more than a tackle to block for a quarterback who they might struggle to secure if they wait too long.
If a deal isn’t done before Round 1, it might just happen on opening night. New York currently holds the 13th overall pick in the draft. If the Jets don’t love the players available in that draft slot, they may decide that offering it to Green Bay is the right course of action.
The Jets also have a pair of second-round selections after trading wideout Elijah Moore to the Cleveland Browns. One or both of those selections could become more enticing to the Packers as Round 1 unfolds.
It certainly feels like a Rodgers trade will get done on or before the draft, but the Packers could afford to wait. Rodgers is due a $58.3 million option bonus, but that doesn’t have to be paid until the start of the regular season.
Time is on Packers’ Side in Rodgers Trade Standoff With Jets
GettyGreen Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers could land with a team other than the New York Jets.
Another element to the equation is that if no deal is reached on or before draft night, the entire trade paradigm will change.
At that point, Green Bay can no longer receive a draft asset in return that will help them win in the 2023 season. If the Jets hold out on making a deal until that opportunity passes, the Packers’ asking price for Rodgers is sure to go up and is almost certain to include a hardline stance that a 2024 first-rounder must be included.
Beyond that, other teams may find themselves in need of a quarterback once draft weekend passes. The Baltimore Ravens have yet to secure the return of former MVP Lamar Jackson even for one year, let alone on a long-term deal. Yet the franchise pulled the trigger on an offer of $18 million to wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., a deal that includes $15 million guaranteed.
It’s unlikely the Ravens made that decision to pair Beckham with a backup. But if Jackson receives a viable offer from another organization, Baltimore will have to choose between matching it or letting Jackson walk for the price of two first-round picks — a required stipulation after a franchise has applied the non-exclusive franchise tag to a player, which the Ravens have done with Jackson this offseason.
The San Francisco 49ers are another team who could eventually end up in the mix for Rodgers if the trade standoff with the Jets extends into the summer. There has been some talk of the Niners potentially moving on from QB Trey Lance, while presumed starter Brock Purdy continues to rehabilitate an elbow injury he suffered in the NFC Championship Game.
Baltimore and San Francisco are the two prime suspects to swoop in and create a bidding war for Rodgers should he remain on the Packers’ roster beyond draft weekend. However, other teams not currently in the market for a quarterback could see their situations change due to injury or other extenuating circumstances — a factor that plays in Green Bay’s favor when it comes to negotiations with the Jets on the compensation for Rodgers.
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Packers Predicted to Win Rodgers Trade, Net Jets’ Premium Asset