#Aaron Rodgers stirs retirement speculation with postgame moment
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“Aaron Rodgers stirs retirement speculation with postgame moment”
Did Aaron Rodgers play his last NFL game?
After Sunday’s season-ending loss to the Lions, the veteran quarterback did something that has stirred speculation about his playing future.
NBC cameras caught Lions rookie receiver Jameson Williams asking Rodgers for his jersey after the game, to which the quarterback replied: “I’m gonna hold on to this one.”
Williams seemed surprised, appearing to say, “You told me,” before Rodgers moved on and shared a moment with Lions running back and former Packer Jamaal Williams.
The logical conclusion is that Rodgers wanted to keep the jersey in case that Packers defeat was the 39-year-old’s final NFL game.
Rodgers addressed his playing future in his postgame press conference, saying he needs time to weigh his decision after the emotion subsides.
“It’s a feeling,” Rodgers said of what it’ll come down to this offseason, adding that he won’t hold the organization hostage with a dragged-out decision. “Do I feel like I have anything left to prove to myself? Do I want to go back and gear up for another grind? Or is it time? Is it time to step away? Is it time for another voice to be leading this team?”
Rodgers also said he has no problem leaving money behind after he and the Packers agreed to a three-year, $150.8M extension this past March. The two sides eventually came to an agreement to keep Rodgers in Green Bay after the quarterback was contemplating retirement.
Rodgers’ frustration with the Packers and the way the the team has built around him hit a boiling point in the 2021 offseason when he pushed for a trade. The reigning two-time MVP wasn’t happy with the organization for not including him on personnel decisions.
In the 2020 NFL Draft, the Packers drafted Rodgers’ heir apparent, quarterback Jordan Love, in the first round.
“I think I need to get away and contemplate those things. Those are real to me. I have a lot of pride in what I’ve accomplished in this league but I’m also a realist and I understand where we’re at as a team. We’re a young team, there could be some changes with some of the older guys and it could be time to step away. But I could take some time and say hell no, man, I need to get back out there and go on another run. But I’ll have to see what it feels like once I’m away from it.”
Rodgers said “it’s gotta be mutual on both sides” with the Packers in order for him to return to the team.
As for whether he’s open to going to another team?
“I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t like saying never, but I gotta see how I’m feeling first, once the emotion is out of it and have the right conversations and see what the best direction is.”
Rodgers answered “yes” when asked whether he believes he’s still got it.
In 18 seasons for the Packers, Rodgers has thrown for 58,691 yards and 473 touchdowns. The eight-time Pro Bowl quarterback has won four MVP awards, a Super Bowl MVP and one championship.
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