The Packers and quarterback Aaron Rodgers have made “noticeable progress” during their negotiations for a long-term extension, and Green Bay reportedly is optimistic that Rodgers will have a new deal in place by the time the 2018 regular season gets underway, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (video link).
Green Bay has apparently been setting Week 1 as a potential deadline for Rodgers talks for awhile, as previous reports have also indicated a similar timeline. But Rapoport’s signal of progress is certainly an improvement over recent reports — such as the one issued by Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk in late July — which said Rodgers and the Packers were still far apart in negotiations.
Any stalls in talks can likely be blamed on the structure of the pact, as Rodgers is believed to prefer a contract that doesn’t lock him into a number long-term. The two-time MVP would like more control over his future and may prefer a deal that includes one big payout before a series of player options. The Packers, however, are attempting to lock up Rodgers via a “bland and traditional” long-term extension.
“As far as setting a trend or breaking down things, it’s great for the game and its players, for sure, when Kirk (Cousins) does a deal like he did,” Rodgers recently said of Cousins’ fully guaranteed Vikings deal. “The reality is, there’s not many teams that would do that, first of all. And there aren’t many teams that would do it for more than three years. So at some point, there are going to be contracts that will continue to extend that, and there’s been guys who’ve done it over the years, who’ve done monumental things, whether it’s Reggie White in free agency, that make a difference for the next generation. That’s something you can have as part of your legacy.”
Rodgers, 34, is currently signed through the 2019 season, with cap charges north of $20MM in each of the next two campaigns. On an annual average basis, though, Rodgers’ $22MM/year now ranks just 10th among quarterbacks, behind the likes of Joe Flacco, Alex Smith, and Derek Carr, among others.
Technically, per the PA agreement with the NFL, Rodgers became a free agent in 2018 having been placed on IR, activated and then placed on IR again for the same injury. Sugarcoat it any way you wish, but due to Rodger’s STAR status and the Packer’s leverage with the League the actual facts have been spin doctored into oblivion by all parties concerned. This is a clear “bending” of the rules to suit your own purposes. It’s just amazing that the other teams in the NFL North are not screaming conspiracy. Perhaps they are just holding on to this “ace in the hole” until THEY need a favorable rule interpretation from the League.
Go sue the NFL in federal court then and whine there!
While I have no doubt in your credentials as a lawyer to interpret and apply the PA agreement, I can’t help but suspect a simpler explanation to the “conspiracy” is that it’s a grey area at best, and a moot anyways given Rodgers would simply resign with GB even if he was declared an FA.
Just because it is your forgone conclusion that AR would resign with the Packers, should he be declared a free agent, that is no reason to bypass the enforcement of league rules. AR S/H/B declared a free agent.
What is this leverage within the league you think the Packers have? They are a small market team like the Bills. If any teams have leverage it would be the Patriots and Cowboys, both of which have a dominate presence in terms of followers on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.
The Packers were (and are) the darlings of the league based on their storied past and length of their existence. Many a fan of professional football began as a Packers fan prior to the league’s expansion into additional local markets. Despite having a “local” team, many a football fan remains a Packers fan.
OK, let’s say that happens, he becomes a FA and resigns with Green Bay immediately. You know full well he isn’t going anywhere and the only reason people like you are pissy is because you either hate the Packers or want Rodgers to be a FA and sign with your team.
I have always had high regard for the Packers and I have no desire to have AR leave the Packers and sign with “my” team. Rules are rules and should be enforced uniformly regardless of the team or player affected Sorry to be muddying the comments with this BUT am I the only one who doesn’t buy in to the snowjob spun on this ?
Just because it is your forgone conclusion that AR would resign with the Packers, should he be declared a free agent, that is no reason to bypass the enforcement of league rules. AR S/H/B declared a free agent.
I can’t even believe people are still bringing this up.
Do you hear any member of: the league, the PA, the Packers bringing this out in the open? The handling of this situation stinks to high heaven.