Report: Rodgers wants new contract (Update: May not want to return in 2021)

[adambr2]

The basic complaint as far as I can tell (if it's not money):

 

1) Organization had wheels in motion to replace Rodgers after...'21? '22?

 

2) Rodgers had MVP year much improved from '19 forcing organization to reconsider immediate future plans of organization.

 

3) Rodgers says "screw you, you didn't want me at my worst so now you can't have me at my best."

[Fear The Chorizo]

I'm not absolving Rodgers from his part in this saga. But can't believe management let things deteriorate to this point.

 

But if the primary reason things deteriorated to this point is the fact Rodgers is a narcissist that probably decided he was going to do this 3 years ago right after signing his current contract extension, what else could management do?

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Management allowed this to deteriorate by drafting the heir apparent to a QB who hadn't been to the Super Bowl in a decade, was approaching late 30s and appeared to be washing out. Only after they drafted him did the guy start playing lights out again.

 

I don't know what else they were supposed to do other than go all-in (how?) and just assume he was good to go for 5 more years. Which would have been stupid.

 

Rodgers wants the keys to the truck, he forgot he might be the engine but he's not the one driving. Shut up and play. This guy and his "beautiful mystery" schtick. This whole diva summer was planned before the Packers even lost. Just go away. Be someone else's problem. I know Mark Murphy saying "don't be the problem," was denied and debunked, but if he did say it, man, how prophetic.

[homer]

The guy might be a jerk and a selfish weirdo but they are probably 8 - 8 without him this year with the current roster. He doesn't seem to be a cancer in the locker room either. Having said that I don't think people would be all that upset if they traded him.

[MrTPlush]

His problem isn’t drafting Jordan Love. Im sure a definitive major problem is he is the MVP of the league now and is on a year to year contract. Not shockingly he doesn’t want to be on those terms with his level of play. Now he has proven he likely has years left in the tank. He was wisely quiet after drafting Love because he hadn’t been playing at an elite level...that isn’t the case now.

[PeaveyFury]

His problem isn’t drafting Jordan Love.

 

He can say that all he wants, but really it is.

[adambr2]

His problem isn’t drafting Jordan Love. Im sure a definitive major problem is he is the MVP of the league now and is on a year to year contract. Not shockingly he doesn’t want to be on those terms with his level of play. Now he has proven he likely has years left in the tank. He was wisely quiet after drafting Love because he hadn’t been playing at an elite level...that isn’t the case now.

 

Don't recall hearing a lot of bickering about his contract not matching his play from Peyton Manning after 2013.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

He's on the same contract he signed and he can walk when it's over. He signed it. If the Packers aren't interested in creating a new one, play it out and let the rumor mill run rampant during the final season, like Tom Brady did. He then left and won somewhere else and most of his fans still love him. What you don't do is take your ball and pout in the corner, while still under contract and still with a very good chance to win.

 

He can do these vague generalities all he wants, but give me a break, the guy started plotting his super team during last season and dropped cute hints that he might do exactly this during the summer. It's because they drafted a QB, and how dare they!

 

One thing Rodgers can never claim again: Winning is #1.

 

I love this semi-recent expectation that after a good season you get to rip your contract up. I guess the Packers should have gotten some money back in '18 and '19. I'm sure Greg Jennings is getting a huge kick out of all of this.

 

There's a very simple reason Rodgers hasn't been specific about this. It's because he knows that will make him look bad, which IMO is his actual #1. And yes, the Packers are likely (but maybe not) 7-10 without him this season, but that's coming down the road pretty soon here anyway. I'd hate to see them being insignificant long term, but he's so annoying to me I'd prefer that to giving the baby his bottle.

[FVBrewerFan]

Has anyone posting here worked with/for a narcissist?

 

I have. They are experts on EVERY topic. They know what's best for everything and even if you have 10 people in the room and 9 disagree with the narcissist they will argue even louder that they are correct. And if you make that decision against their input, you better believe it will be revisited over and over again even if it wasn't a mistake. If it was a mistake, oh my god, it will never die as it will be brought up over and over again. Sound familiar.

 

Trust? The only person a narcissist trusts is themselves and they will trust others only as long as they agree with them 100% of the time. For Rodgers, he trusts his representation because they will agree with him that water is dry, the sky is orange and his crap tastes great. Put a narcissist into a "democratic" or management structure where they are only 1 of many voices and they will be unhappy no matter what. They want to be GOD, EMPEROR, and the only voice in the room.

 

The breaking point was Jake Kumerow? The guy who can't keep a roster spot on any team? That guy? That's the type of decision a narcissist will argue about while the rest of us realize he isn't worth the ATP... And a narcissist will argue about the most insignificant decision as much as the most significant decision because everyone is supposed to ALWAYS do what they want. Because they are the smartest person in the universe and the center of the universe.

 

Sure, a good manager might try to placate them until they realize that they are a black hole and no matter what you feed the beast, they just grow bigger and needier and require more and more and more and more and more. There is no throwing them the entire carcass and expecting them to be appeased. They will just complain you didn't do it fast enough. You didn't ask them if they were happy. You didn't stroke their ego every second of every day.

 

Cut bait and move on. There's no winning with a narcissist who feels slighted. It is a never ending downward spiral...

 

Man, you brought back some horrible flashbacks for me! But you're right about all of it. One more thing Rodgers related. The narcissist never wants to be seen as the jerk. They still want people to love them, and are delusional enough to believe they do.

[Fear The Chorizo]

His problem isn’t drafting Jordan Love.

 

He can say that all he wants, but really it is.

 

Agreed - he's been consistent in framing Love as "a good kid that's fun to work with"....same stuff he was quoted saying about other QBs drafted in later rounds or undrafted FAs brought in who were never viewed as a potential heir apparent (i.e., Hundley, Flynn, Boyle, Brohm - who was drafted in round 2 of the 2008 draft right before Rodgers was given the keys to the franchise amidst the Favre fiasco).

 

The difference with Love (and Rodgers obviously knows this) is he's talented enough to be a starting QB in the NFL after a bit of seasoning/development....based on how Rodgers' contract is currently structured I'm convinced he had been planning this sort of tantrum for awhile, probably after next season when he would have felt he'd have the Packers cornered the most in effort to get one more huge contract done - but then they went ahead and drafted a legit quarterback prospect last season and hastily sped up Rodgers' timeline in case people see that Love can play once he's actually able to take meaningful game snaps this coming preseason - even if the only person who felt Love actually would unseat a QB playing at an MVP level is Rodgers himself, that's all it took for him to have the view that everyone is thinking that way.

[MrTPlush]

Not sure Jordan Love is really a problem at this point. I am sure Rodgers doesn't want to play under his current deal that is effectively year to year...and really he shouldn't be okay with that. People can say, "Oh he signed the contract, stop complaining and play." Alright, we all know that isn't how contracts in the NFL work. That being said all signs point to the Packers willing to extend Rodgers big time and seemingly where its pretty much impossible to ditch him for 3+ years. That makes Jordan Love pretty irrelevant as there would be little to no risk of Love stealing his job whether he is on the team or not. I somewhat doubt trading Love is even a requirement to come back for that reason. Heck, even if Love wasn't on the team the contract would be a massive issue anyway. Players don't win MVPs and then want to go year to year on their deal. They want to cash in on it.

 

The way the Packers are talking it sounds like they have pretty much offered all they could. What is the hold up at this point, I don't know, I will let one of you guys that likes to run around with the media circus try and guess. Trying to decipher the media leaks was fun for a week or two, but its clearly just a landfill of clickbait. I will be happy when it is all over because I am tired of hearing about how a bunch of adults couldn't communicate correctly.

[nodakfan17]

Very few things in pro sports surprise me, but cutting a week of gym class and passing on a half million dollars? Yikes.

[adambr2]

Not sure Jordan Love is really a problem at this point. I am sure Rodgers doesn't want to play under his current deal that is effectively year to year...and really he shouldn't be okay with that. People can say, "Oh he signed the contract, stop complaining and play." Alright, we all know that isn't how contracts in the NFL work. That being said all signs point to the Packers willing to extend Rodgers big time and seemingly where its pretty much impossible to ditch him for 3+ years. That makes Jordan Love pretty irrelevant as there would be little to no risk of Love stealing his job whether he is on the team or not. I somewhat doubt trading Love is even a requirement to come back for that reason. Heck, even if Love wasn't on the team the contract would be a massive issue anyway. Players don't win MVPs and then want to go year to year on their deal. They want to cash in on it.

 

The way the Packers are talking it sounds like they have pretty much offered all they could. What is the hold up at this point, I don't know, I will let one of you guys that likes to run around with the media circus try and guess. Trying to decipher the media leaks was fun for a week or two, but its clearly just a landfill of clickbait. I will be happy when it is all over because I am tired of hearing about how a bunch of adults couldn't communicate correctly.

 

It's not a "year to year" contract. We're literally just one year into the extension that he signed less than 3 years ago, he's still 3 got years on it with large base salaries and the cap hit to get rid of it right now would be massive. The extension made him the highest paid player in NFL history at the time, and now it's been surpassed, as it goes.

 

As I mentioned before, I didn't see Peyton Manning renegotiating after he won MVP in 2013. Yes, contracts aren't rigid in the NFL but tearing it up and starting over every time you outperform your market value isn't how it works either. So we give Rodgers 45M, he wins MVP, Lamar Jackson wins the Super Bowl and gets 50M, are we going back to the negotiating table again?

[adambr2]

And frankly, while I don't begrudge a player trying to get all he can get, you'd think that a guy who has made several hundred million in his career and hasn't been to a Super Bowl in over a decade and is pushing 40 would have priorities that put winning first. You can see the difference late in their careers between Rodgers and guys like Brady, Manning and Brees as to what was most important to them.

 

And you taking more money makes it hard for us to put winning first. Go ahead and take it if you want it all, you've earned it -- but don't piss and moan later when we don't have the dough for Julio Jones or Kenny Golladay.

[pacopete4]

Very few things in pro sports surprise me, but cutting a week of gym class and passing on a half million dollars? Yikes.

 

This. I totally get that these guys have plenty of money but this always seems so damn foolish to me. Heck, even if you don't need the 500K, the things you can do with that money to help others would be a driving force.

[MrTPlush]

Very few things in pro sports surprise me, but cutting a week of gym class and passing on a half million dollars? Yikes.

 

This. I totally get that these guys have plenty of money but this always seems so damn foolish to me. Heck, even if you don't need the 500K, the things you can do with that money to help others would be a driving force.

 

What do the Packers do with fine money? Just pocket it?

 

If I recall the NFL takes fine money and it does go to charity. That is why many players embrace certain trivial fines like celebrations. Not sure if teams do it differently.

[PeaveyFury]

And you taking more money makes it hard for us to put winning first. Go ahead and take it if you want it all, you've earned it -- but don't piss and moan later when we don't have the dough for Julio Jones or Kenny Golladay.

 

This. He's completely talking out of both sides of his mouth here. You can bemoan not taking care of the 'people around you' or making the moves you want them to make, but it's YOUR OWN contract and, apparently, demands for A HIGHER contract that are literally handcuffing the Packers from being able to make said deal. Want them to trade for Julio Jones? Maybe adjusting your cap number this year would help in that....

 

Unless, of course, all that other stuff is just noise, and it's about you yourself getting paid, and only that.

[SeaBass]

Very few things in pro sports surprise me, but cutting a week of gym class and passing on a half million dollars? Yikes.

 

This. I totally get that these guys have plenty of money but this always seems so damn foolish to me. Heck, even if you don't need the 500K, the things you can do with that money to help others would be a driving force.

 

What do the Packers do with fine money? Just pocket it?

 

If I recall the NFL takes fine money and it does go to charity. That is why many players embrace certain trivial fines like celebrations. Not sure if teams do it differently.

That's just fine money, Rodgers isn't being fined for missing OTAs as they are voluntary. He did not earn his bonus however. An unpaid, unearned bonus is not a fine.

[MrTPlush]

I am not a huge expert on NFL contracts, but wouldn't an extension be of benefit to both sides in the short term and basically just push the cap problems farther down the road? If both sides want each other for years to come wouldn't pushing the can down the road be better than trying to play out the current contract? Even if he got paid more they could just structure it to be a better situation than the current contract?

[MrTPlush]

That's just fine money, Rodgers isn't being fined for missing OTAs as they are voluntary. He did not earn his bonus however. An unpaid, unearned bonus is not a fine.

 

Ahhh, I gotcha. I forgot it was a bonus and not a fine. He won't lose money via fine till training camp etc.

[PeaveyFury]

I am not a huge expert on NFL contracts, but wouldn't an extension be of benefit to both sides in the short term and basically just push the cap problems farther down the road? If both sides want each other for years to come wouldn't pushing the can down the road be better than trying to play out the current contract? Even if he got paid more they could just structure it to be a better situation than the current contract?

 

Yes, they likely could structure it this way. But the point is, the Packers have, by wide reports, tried to coordinate an extension/restructure to free up that space, and Rodgers' feelings are 'too hurt' at this point for them to come to an agreement.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

He'll have an epiphany in July/August and show up to play, be willing to let his beautiful mystery play out and be very deep and philosophical about it, I predict. Then if the Packers regress, which in all honesty they are probably due for, he can blame the team again for his failures.

[MrTPlush]

Is there anything on why 5 WRs skipped OTAs too? Davante Adams also appeared to surrender $500k to not go. Is that all coincidental or are the WRs somewhat standing up for their QB? I didn't really see anything that dove into why any of those guys didn't show up or if they have skipped in past years too.

[Fear The Chorizo]

I am not a huge expert on NFL contracts, but wouldn't an extension be of benefit to both sides in the short term and basically just push the cap problems farther down the road? If both sides want each other for years to come wouldn't pushing the can down the road be better than trying to play out the current contract? Even if he got paid more they could just structure it to be a better situation than the current contract?

 

Yes - particularly with this weird upcoming salary cap year where it's actually lower than 2020 due to COVID revenue shortfalls. For example, Tom Brady's 2021 cap hit is roughly $10M after another crazy restructure this spring - that allowed Tampa Bay to basically resign anyone they wanted from their Super Bowl roster who was a free agent. Takes both parties wanting and being willing to push the can down the road, however.

 

When GK was restructuring anyone he could on the current roster this spring, Rodgers was really the lone remaining big contract player who didn't restructure (Adams also, but both parties likely want the next negotiation to be a big extension and not just a restructure). Reading the tea leaves, I think Rodgers was approached about a restructure of his current deal and he declined - instead asking for a brand new monster deal that probably included a crazy amount of signing bonus money upfront and a contract the Packers just couldn't make work under this season's cap limitations with their current roster.

[pacopete4]

If the money goes to charity and players know that, then cool. If not, and they are just handing back over to the franchise/NFL then they are not as smart as they want you to believe.