NFC North

So Tuesday was a day in the National Football League.

Two of the biggest pieces in this year's quarterback carousel fell. One in a blockbuster deal that may go down as the most impactful trade in league history. The other in less dramatic fashion: The league's two-time defending MVP decided to stay put.

The agreement to send Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos was a stunner in every sense of the word, but it was a lot less surprising that Aaron Rodgers decided to stick with the Green Bay Packers, who have won 13 games in each of the past three seasons.

That return ended a soap opera regarding Rodgers' future that began the moment Green Bay was stunned at home by the San Francisco 49ers in the divisional playoffs. But in many ways, the move carries the same expectations as Denver's massive gamble on Wilson.

There is one thing and one thing only that will justify Green Bay's commitment—and all the roster moves that will come after it.

Winning Super Bowl LVII.

That Rodgers will be back is settled. The specifics, however, are not.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network tweeted that Rodgers and the Packers had agreed on a four-year, $200 million extension that included a whopping $153 million in guarantees.

Rodgers refuted the report, however, confirming his return but disputing the terms.

In any event, it's a good day to be a Cheesehead.

There had been speculation galore that Rodgers would be involved in a blockbuster trade this offseason. But at the NFL Scouting Combine, Green Bay general manager Brian Gutekunst said the team had not received a single offer for the 38-year-old. For his part, head coach Matt LaFleur said that while he'd of course prefer to have Rodgers lead his offense again, he wasn't going to attempt to influence Rodgers' decision.

"I told him, I don't wanna be overbearing and tell him every day how much we love him and how much we want him back," LaFleur said. "So you just wanna be respectful of his space and allow him to think through everything clearly without being annoying, I guess."

Apparently, the two sides hashed out whatever differences may have existed.

That's just the beginning. The Packers will be in scramble mode over the next week, trying to hold the team together around Rodgers and star wide receiver Davante Adams, who was assigned a franchise tag that would pay the 29-year-old $20.5 million.

Per Over the Cap, no team is in worse shape relative to the salary cap.

The Pack will undoubtedly try to sign Adams to a more team-friendly extension. High-priced players such as edge-rusher Za'Darius Smith, left tackle David Bakhtiari and cornerback Jaire Alexander will probably be asked to restructure their contracts to free up space. There may well be a cap casualty or two.

Then Green Bay has to try to re-up its other free agents: linebacker and leading tackler De'Vondre Campbell, cornerback Rasul Douglas, wide receivers Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Allen Lazard and tight end Robert Tonyan.

Then there's the future of quarterback Jordan Love. If Rodgers' extension is anywhere close to the terms Rapoport disclosed, it's just about impossible to believe that Love—whom Gutekunst moved up in Round 1 to draft in 2020—won't be traded. The only question is where and for what.

The Pack have their quarterback, No. 1 wideout, a potent duo at running back in Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon and a solid offensive line. But there's still plenty of uncertainty.

What is certain is that unless Green Bay puts the "title" back in Titletown, then all the drama over the past year-plus will have been for naught.

And even with Rodgers, there's no guarantee the Packers will reach the mountaintop.

To be clear, Rodgers' talent and resume are unquestionable. Last year's MVP award was his fourth—only Peyton Manning has more. Rodgers threw 37 touchdown passes to just four interceptions. He has thrown almost five times as many touchdown passes as interceptions in his career, has a career passer rating of 104.5 (highest in NFC history) and sports a staggering regular-season record of 139-66-1.

If he retired tomorrow, Rodgers would be a first-ballot Hall of Famer. There's no question the Packers are exponentially better with him than without him.

But for all that success, Rodgers has played in one Super Bowl, and that was 11 years ago. He has excellent numbers in the postseason as well—45 touchdowns to 13 interceptions and a 100.1 passer rating. But the Packers are just 11-10 in the playoffs under Rodgers and 1-4 in NFC Championship Games. Last season, Green Bay scored a touchdown on its first possession against San Francisco—and then didn't score another.

Rodgers certainly doesn't bear all the responsibility for those disappointments—football is a team game, and the Green Bay special teams bore the brunt of the blame for this last loss. But as longtime Packers beat writer Bob McGinn stated (via Peter King of NBC Sports), Rodgers' aversion to making mistakes could be as much curse as blessing.

"Rodgers ... for years has played a careful, calculating game understanding that number of interceptions plays a disproportionate, nonsensical role in the passer-rating formula. Bad interceptions are, well, bad. Then there are interceptions that are the cost of doing business for unselfish, competitive, stats-immune quarterbacks battling to make plays and lead comebacks until the bitter end. When a quarterback, especially one with a powerful, usually accurate arm like Rodgers, deliberately minimizes chances to deliver a big play for fear of an interception ... that's just hurting his team. In the playoff game, a modest talent like Jimmy Garoppolo was under every bit as much pass-rush pressure as Rodgers but drilled more tight-window completions down the field largely because he wasn't afraid of a pick and the moment."

That pedestrian playoff game against the Niners (225 passing yards, zero touchdowns) was the final chapter in a roller-coaster campaign for Rodgers. Yes, he was the regular-season MVP. But that was after a similarly dramatic offseason in which he reportedly clashed with Gutekunst. And the in-season controversy about his COVID-19 vaccination status (and whether he intentionally misled people about it).

It's drama on top of drama on top of drama. And the soap opera isn't going to stop now that Rodgers has returned (again). If anything, it will ramp up.

Barring financial finagling of epic proportions, the 2022 Packers aren't going to be as good on paper as they were in 2021. That isn't to say Green Bay won't be among the NFC favorites again—the Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams have similar cap constraints and free-agent issues, and teams such as the 49ers, Dallas Cowboys and Arizona Cardinals have talent and question marks in equal measure.

But the spotlight on Rodgers and the Packers will be even brighter and harsher than it was a year ago, after the first "will he, or won't he?" offseason. Expectations will be sky-high. Every setback will be front-page news. Every mistake will be magnified.

And if Rodgers continues to court controversy off the field, Twitter may have to add extra servers.

The Packers and their fans got what they wanted. They got their MVP quarterback back. But his return isn't a panacea.

And unless Rodgers can finally get over the hump, shake off the perception that he can't win when the stakes are highest (a criticism that was once also levied at Manning) and get Green Bay another Super Bowl win, the time may come a year or two from now when those same fans wonder if it all was worth it.

Aaron Rodgers is returning to Green Bay in 2022—he just hasn't finalized the terms on a new contract.

Yet.

Rodgers took to social media Tuesday to deny reports of a four-year, $200 million deal while affirming his decision to return for an 18th season with the Packers.

Pat McAfee previously reported—almost certainly via Rodgers—that the terms of the deal floating around social media were inaccurate.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported the alleged terms, which would make Rodgers the highest-paid player in league history annually. 

The Packers will need Rodgers to reach terms on a new contract if they hope to build a Super Bowl contender around him. He's carrying an onerous $46.7 million cap hit for the 2022 season—an unsustainable number for a team that's $50.6 million over the cap.

With Davante Adams coming back on the franchise tag, there's no world in which the Packers get under the cap with a championship-caliber team without a new deal in place. An extension could save Green Bay up to $21.1 million in cap space. 

It is theoretically possible the Packers and Rodgers simply tack on void years to the end of his contract as a pseudo extension. That said, it's much more likely a framework of what's been reported is accurate—just not fully agreed upon at this very moment.

Rodgers has developed an increasingly contentious relationship with media over the course of the last year, and it's possible he's taking this as a chance to push against what he perceives as "fake news."

In the end, it would be a massive surprise—and an on-field misfire—if there's not an extension in place by the time the new league year starts next Wednesday. 

Two-time defending NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers will return to the Green Bay Packers, as Pat McAfee revealed Tuesday on The Pat McAfee Show:

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport initially reportedly Rodgers' new deal is worth $200 million over four years and includes $153 million guaranteed. However, both McAfee and Matt Schneidman of The Athletic say the reported contract figures are not accurate.

Rodgers himself later denied a new contract had been agreed upon:

Of note, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes holds the record for top average annual value, coming in at $45 million.

There was intense speculation about Rodgers' future in the aftermath of Green Bay's 13-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Divisional Round.

Rodgers fueled some of that talk with his comments during the postgame press conference.

"I did not think we'd be talking about this after this game," Rodgers said. "I'm going to take some time and have conversations with the folks around here and then take some time away and make a decision, obviously before free agency or anything kind of gets going on that front."

On Feb. 21, Rodgers posted a cryptic message on Instagram that included a thank-you note to several of his Packers teammates:

Another issue for the Packers was their cap situation as several key players, including Davante Adams, Rasul Douglas and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, were poised to become unrestricted free agents.

Per Over the Cap, the Packers were $40.1 million over the 2022 cap before trying to re-sign those players and make any roster changes in free agency.

This new contract ends a yearlong saga that began prior to the first round of the 2021 NFL draft. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in April 2021 Rodgers had become "so disgruntled" with the Packers that he told some people in the organization he didn't want to return to the team.

Amid speculation that Rodgers might be traded before the start of last season, the Packers instead reworked his contract:

When Rodgers finally arrived at Packers training camp in July, he had a long press conference in which he opened up about some of his issues with the organization:

Also, I wanted to help the organization maybe learn from some of the mistakes in the past, in my opinion, about the way some of the outgoing veterans were treated and just the fact that we didn't retain a number of players that I feel like were core players to our foundation, our locker room. High character guys, I'm talking about Charles Woodson, Jordy Nelson, Julius Peppers, Clay Matthews, Randall Cobb, James Jones, John Kuhn, Brett Goode, TJ Lang, Bryan Bulaga, Casey Heyward, Micah Hyde. Guys who were exceptional players for us, great locker room guys, high character guys, many of them whom weren't offered a contract at all or were extremely low-balled or were maybe, in my opinion, not given the respect on the way out that guys of their status and stature and high character deserve. And, then it kind of progressed from there into a commitment for the 2021 season and beyond, that really wasn't given at any time.

The Packers are still in prime position to compete for a championship, even with some potential cap issues. Their division is weak with the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears still rebuilding and the Minnesota Vikings needing to figure out a direction after finishing 8-9 in 2021.

Green Bay was the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs for the second consecutive season. Rodgers won his fourth career NFL MVP award after throwing for 4,115 yards and 37 touchdowns in 16 starts.

The Packers have won 13 games in each of the past three seasons. They have made the playoffs 10 times in 12 seasons with Rodgers as their quarterback, including a victory in Super Bowl XLV in 2011.

Rodgers' return ensures the Packers will compete in a crowded NFC as they pursue a fourth straight division title in 2022.

The Green Bay Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers reportedly have agreed-upon trade packages lined up with numerous teams if the four-time NFL MVP decides he wants to move on after 17 seasons with the franchise.

That report comes from PFT's Mike Florio, who specifically mentioned the Denver Broncos, Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers as potential landing spots: 

Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Rodgers has specific deals lined up with other teams—and those teams have trade compensation lined up with the Packers. The potential moves have been arranged, essentially, with the permission of the Packers.

The destinations are believed to be exclusively in the AFC. To little surprise, the Broncos are one of them. Other viable possibilities are, we’re told, the Titans and Steelers.

To be clear, if Rodgers chooses Denver or Tennesseee or Pittsburgh, the deals will fall into place quickly, both as to the trade terms and as to the contract Rodgers would sign.

The 38-year-old Rodgers completed 68.9 percent of his passes for 37 touchdowns (four interceptions) and 4,115 yards last year for the Packers, who earned the NFC's No. 1 playoff seed but fell to the San Francisco 49ers in the Divisional Round.

Rodgers, who has one year left on his deal, is reportedly "truly torn" on where he wants to play in 2022 per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

All three AFC teams on the list Florio mentioned make sense for various reasons.

The Steelers need a quarterback after Ben Roethlisberger retired. They have some young options in Mason Rudolph and Dwayne Haskins, but adding an MVP talent like Rodgers to a team that went to the playoffs last year is a no-brainer.

The Broncos have been playing quarterback roulette since Peyton Manning retired after the 2015 Super Bowl season. Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch, Brock Osweiler, Case Keenum, Joe Flacco, Drew Lock, Brandon Allen and Teddy Bridgewater have all started multiple games for the Broncos from 2016-2021.

Rodgers can solidify the quarterback position for a few years. The Broncos already have a rock-solid defense and a talented group of skill-position players to work with. Plus, Rodgers' ex-Packers offensive coordinator (Nathaniel Hackett) is now the Broncos' head coach.

The Titans already have a solid quarterback in Ryan Tannehill, who has helped lead Tennessee to the playoffs each of the last three years. However, Rodgers would be an upgrade for a team that earned the AFC's No. 1 seed last year.

Rodgers could also stay in Green Bay or simply call it a career. For now, Rodgers' decision remains one of the biggest offseason talking points and dominoes of this NFL offseason.

The Green Bay Packers notably did not include two-time defending MVP Aaron Rodgers in their announcement that they would be playing a game in London during the 2022 season. 

Star wideout Davante Adams, a free agent, was also left off the promotional picture. 

Rodgers has yet to announce publicly whether he intends to retire or return to playing for the 2022 campaign, and if he chooses the latter, whether it will be with the Packers.

Rodgers ended his holdout with the team ahead of the 2021 season after the 2023 year in his deal was voided and the team reportedly agreed "to review Rodgers' situation at the end of this season," per ESPN's Adam Schefter, leaving open the possibility of a divorce. 

He said last week on the Pat McAfee Show that he hasn't yet made a decision on his future:

The Packers, at least, appear to be bracing for the possibility that he won't be back. 

Former Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer reportedly did not have much faith in Kirk Cousins by the end of last season.

"Zimmer complained openly in coaching meetings about Cousins, and some of Zimmer’s top lieutenants echoed the sentiment," Chad Graff of The Athletic reported. "Zimmer didn’t feel the quarterback made enough 'winning plays,' that he didn't take the necessary shots to help lead the Vikings to victory, and that he didn’t elevate his teammates."

Zimmer was fired after finishing with an 8-9 record in 2021, missing the playoffs for the second straight season. The Vikings went 72-56-1 in eight seasons under Zimmer.

Cousins is coming off his fourth year in Minnesota, producing impressive numbers during this stretch with 124 passing touchdowns and a 103.5 passer rating.

In 2021, the quarterback was an injury replacement in the Pro Bowl after recording 4,221 passing yards, 33 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. But the offense lacked consistency, finishing 14th in points.

The Vikings have just one playoff appearance with Cousins as their starter, resulting in one wild-card win. A year before Cousins arrived, Minnesota reached the NFC Championship Game behind journeyman quarterback Case Keenum.

Cousins will now enter the 2022 season with a $45 million cap hit, the third-highest in the NFL, per Spotrac. 

This puts pressure on new head coach Kevin O'Connell to get more out of the 33-year-old in order to bring the squad back into contention.

O'Connell has worked with Cousins before, serving as a quarterbacks coach for the Washington Commanders in 2017. That could lead to a better relationship between the two sides following Zimmer's exit.     

The Green Bay Packers and left tackle David Bakhtiari reportedly converted $11.6 million of his 2022 salary into a signing bonus to create space under the salary cap.

ESPN's Field Yates reported the reworked deal Saturday. Bakhtiari is under contract through 2024 as part of a four-year, $92 million deal.

Bakhtiari, 30, was limited to one appearance in 2021 because of a knee injury. He had earned three Pro Bowl selections and two All-Pro nods across his first eight years with the Packers.

Green Bay restructured the contracts of running back Aaron Jones and defensive tackle Kenny Clark earlier in the week as it seeks cap relief.

The Packers are a projected $28.3 million over the estimated top-51 salary cap for next season, per Spotrac.

Their financial flexibility depends heavily on the future of quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who is scheduled to count $46.7 million against the cap as part of his four-year, $134 million contract.

Rodgers, who's been the focus of trade rumors since last year, hasn't committed to playing next season and didn't yield much insight in an Instagram post Monday.

"To my teammates, past and current, you are the icing on the beautiful cake we call our job; football," Rodgers wrote. "The friendships that we have will transcend our collective time in this game and I am so thankful for the role that each of you have played in making my life that much better. I love you guys, and cherish the memories we've made."

Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst acknowledged Wednesday that the team is in wait-and-see mode until the four-time MVP makes his decision.

"Obviously everything around here centers around the quarterback. That's kind of how we do things," Gutekunst told reporters. "It's a big piece. It's a domino that has to fall before we go down other avenues. So it's important as we go through this and the puzzle pieces that we got to make fit. That's the first one to go."

If Rodgers keeps playing and remains in Green Bay, the team will hope he reworks his contract or the front office will have to make tough decisions.

The Packers might need to factor in an additional $18.5 million, which is the projected cap hit for using the franchise tag on a wide receiver, namely Davante Adams. There's been no indication the sides are close on a long-term contract extension.

There could be a lot of moving parts in the months ahead as Green Bay attempts to keep as many key players as possible after it posted an NFL-best 13-4 record in 2021.

Former Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee debunked reports that Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers wants to become the highest-paid player in the NFL on Friday.

Speaking about the subject on his Pat McAfee Show (beginning at the 7:40 mark), McAfee said he texted Rodgers to ask if it was true and was told it wasn't:

McAfee added that the reports about Rodgers demanding $50 million from the Packers were "categorically false."

Rumors of Rodgers' monetary demands surfaced Thursday when ESPN's Dianna Russini appeared on the Rich Eisen Show and said Rodgers wants to be the "highest-paid player in the NFL by a wide margin," which would put him in the neighborhood of $50 million per year:

Rodgers won his second consecutive NFL MVP award last season, and there are questions regarding whether he will remain with the Packers.

After initially not reporting to training camp last year because of issues with the organization, Rodgers ultimately showed up and played out the season.

At the time, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Packers made some concessions to get Rodgers to play in 2021. Among them was voiding the 2023 year in Rodgers' contract to make him a free agent after 2022.

Schefter also reported last year that the Packers and Rodgers were in discussions about essentially allowing Rodgers to choose where he wants to play in 2022.

Earlier this week, however, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said agreeing to trade Rodgers if he wanted out after 2021 "was not something I told him," per ESPN's Rob Demovsky.

Rodgers has been outspoken about his belief that the Packers haven't always treated their top players with proper respect or given them the types of contracts they deserve in order to keep them in the fold.

Wide receiver Randall Cobb was among the players Rodgers specifically mentioned, and the Packers acquired him prior to the 2021 season in an apparent attempt to appease their disgruntled quarterback.

Former Packers wide receiver Greg Jennings, who was Rodgers' teammate from 2006-12, called Rodgers a "very selfish guy" during an appearance on FS1's First Things First on Friday:

In reference to the report that Rodgers wanted to be the highest-paid player in the NFL, Jennings suggested that Rodgers hasn't been practicing what he preaches.

Jennings said Rodgers once told him, "Don't be that guy," in reference to Jennings trying to land a big contract. If Rodgers is indeed trying to get a huge contract in his own right, it can be argued that it flies in the face of what he allegedly told Jennings.

With that said, Rodgers is only set to make $27.490 million in 2022, per Spotrac, which is extremely low considering what he brings to the table.

The 38-year-old veteran is the two-time defending NFL MVP and a four-time MVP overall, plus a 10-time Pro Bowler and one-time Super Bowl champion.

He has also led the Packers to 13 wins in each of the past three seasons, although they have fallen short of the Super Bowl each time.

Even so, Rodgers gives the Packers the best opportunity to win a championship, and if he does want more money despite what he told McAfee, it is fair to say he deserves it.

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers is reportedly hoping to become the highest-paid player in the NFL. 

While speaking Thursday on The Rich Eisen Show, ESPN's Dianna Russini reported that "from the conversations I've had with a lot of people in the league, he wants to be the highest-paid player in the NFL—by a wide margin.

"So we're talking about 50 million a year."

Russini reported earlier Thursday that Rodgers "will be informing the Packers of his decision soon." She added that "multiple teams" have offers ready for the veteran quarterback. 

Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst told reporters Wednesday that he and Rodgers agreed last summer to reevaluate his future with the franchise ahead of the 2022 campaign. However, Gutekunst never promised the reigning MVP a trade. 

Gutekunst also said Wednesday that Rodgers' situation would need to be worked out before the team can make any other moves this offseason. 

He told reporters:

Obviously everything around here centers around the quarterback. That's kind of how we do things. It's a big piece. It's a domino that has to fall before we go down other avenues. So it's important as we go through this and the puzzle pieces that we got to make fit. That's the first one to go. … There's some timing elements to things. We've had really good conversations with Aaron and everybody throughout the process.

Rodgers' future in Green Bay has been up in the air since before the 2021 season began. He fueled trade rumors on Monday by thanking the Packers and his teammates in a lengthy Instagram post. 

However, he put an end to that speculation that his Green Bay tenure was over by saying Tuesday on The Pat McAfee Show that he is still undecided on his future with the franchise and in the NFL.

Rodgers, who is under contract through 2022 and can opt out of his 2023 season, has spent his entire 17-year career in Green Bay and won his fourth MVP award as a member of the franchise after an outstanding 2021 season in which he completed 68.9 percent of his passes for 4,115 yards and 37 touchdowns against four interceptions. 

If Rodgers were to move on from Green Bay ahead of the 2022 season, it's unclear where he might end up. However, there are several teams in need of a quarterback change, including the Denver Broncos, Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.