Packers make decision on Aaron Rodgers bonus

Aaron Rodgers decided to re-sign with the Green Bay Packers back in March, signing an extension that encompasses the last year of his current deal plus four more years (though the final two years are essentially dummy years in order to spread out Rodgers’ cap number).

Included in the deal was a 2022 roster bonus totaling $40.8 million. Per ESPN’s Field Yates, the payment was originally scheduled to be made on December 31. However, the team has now split that payment so that the MVP quarterback receives $20.8 million on June 20 and another $20.8 million by September 30.

That’ll be a pretty nice Monday morning for Rodgers when he checks his bank account.

Of course, the change has many speculating about any potential reasons that the payment might have been changed. One potential idea is that, in the wake of Rodgers admitting that he thinks about retirement “all the time,” this restructuring helps him avoid any potential payment obligations if he decides to retire before the 2022 NFL season.

Rodgers attended mandatory minicamp this past week and that may have helped both sides to feel good about a commitment to the season ahead.

It’d be a mostly symbolic gesture if that’s the reality, but either way, it could be a way to ensure that both sides feel good about the 2022 NFL season and have clear consciouses about what happens afterward without the worry of where any owed money happens to be.

If this ends up being Rodgers’ last season in the NFL, he’ll be playing to get back to the Super Bowl and three-peat as NFL MVP. It would be a heck of a way to go out.

[PFT]