Every move that Aaron Rodgers makes this offseason will be heavily scrutinized as the future of his playing career is under a microscope.
NFL insider Adam Schefter of ESPN offered the latest he’s been hearing on the Green Bay Packers’ long-time quarterback, as Rodgers’ situation has been subject to speculation for the third straight offseason.
“Make no mistake, both sides are fully aware that a trade is a very real scenario this offseason for Aaron Rodgers,” Schefter said Saturday on ESPN’s Postseason NFL Countdown. “The Packers are expected to move on from certain players, which Aaron Rodgers probably will not like.”
Players like wide receivers Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb, as well as Robert Tonyan, Jr. and Marcedes Lewis, will be unrestricted free agents come March 15 — the start of the new league year.
Schefter says that the issue with trading Rodgers is he has upwards of $100 million left on his contract, which leaves up for debate about which NFL teams could afford to absorb a salary cap hit of that magnitude.
“There is a real possibility, that some point this offseason, Aaron Rodgers is going to be traded,” Schefter later added.
During his weekly appearance on The Pat McAfee Show Tuesday, Rodgers seemed uncertain about what lies ahead but admitted that he’s not “mentally or physically” ready to make any rash decisions on his future.
“When you have played for so long, it is never about jumping right into the next season,” said Rodgers via The Pat McAfee Show on Twitter. “We had all the conversations that we wanted to have about football for now. They weren’t pressing for a specific answer, and I’m not mentally or emotionally at the point to give an answer.”
There’s no telling how this could shake out, but based on Schefter’s reporting, there remains a very real possibility that Rodgers has played his last game in a Packers uniform.