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

[PeaveyFury]

But larger point, I don't get the sense Rodgers necessarily thought letting all those guys go was a mistake. I think he felt that he should have been consulted on the transaction. Subtle distinction but I think he is smart enough to understand there's a cap and you can't sign everyone.

 

And I think the counter argument to that would be that he shouldn’t.

[Ron Robinsons Beard]

But larger point, I don't get the sense Rodgers necessarily thought letting all those guys go was a mistake. I think he felt that he should have been consulted on the transaction. Subtle distinction but I think he is smart enough to understand there's a cap and you can't sign everyone.

 

He specifically mentioned that both Nelson and Woodson were willing to take large pay cuts to stay around. That tells me he wanted them to stay around.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

There are all kinds of variables that go into whether Nelson should have been brought back that has more to do with the box scores of games. If he's playing, somebody else isn't, and the Raiders WR group was terrrrrrrrible that season.

 

Also, I could be mixing up by years, but I believe Jordy was comeback player of the year in 2016. In 2017, it was very apparent via eye test that he had lost a step. I think that was the year he struggled a ton getting separation and became a total non-factor.

 

The Packers receiving corps was Adams (111), Graham (55), MVS (38). They could have used Nelson.

 

Randall Cobb missed half the season. It was totally reasonable to cut ties with Nelson and run with Adams and Cobb and some combo of MVS/Allison/Graham. They weren't good, Nelson was getting worse, so getting more snaps for a budding player wasn't really a crazy decision.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

But larger point, I don't get the sense Rodgers necessarily thought letting all those guys go was a mistake. I think he felt that he should have been consulted on the transaction. Subtle distinction but I think he is smart enough to understand there's a cap and you can't sign everyone.

 

And I think the counter argument to that would be that he shouldn’t.

 

This where Rodgers loses me. He'd really feel better if he voiced his opinion in a board room and they ignored it anyway? Yeah I have trouble believing him.

[homer]

But larger point, I don't get the sense Rodgers necessarily thought letting all those guys go was a mistake. I think he felt that he should have been consulted on the transaction. Subtle distinction but I think he is smart enough to understand there's a cap and you can't sign everyone.

 

And I think the counter argument to that would be that he shouldn’t.

 

You have a 12-13 year veteran, a guy that knows the relationships of the locker room better than the coaches, and the move you make directly impacts his job...I don't see how that's out of the question to just check in and see what he thinks about it. Yeah maybe the answer is still no.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

It's a complicated situation. I get where Rodgers is coming from, but he should be smart enough to know that he's excluded from some conversations because they know he's emotionally attached to these people and they are his friends. He should have the intellect to realize that sometimes they can't ask his opinion on everything and maybe even respect that they don't because they know it will upset him.

 

It's weird because I get both sides of it. He's ticked off anyway, so in the end maybe you had nothing to lose by running it by him. It's a bit like asking a kid's dad if he should make the select team. You know what he's doing to say and he can't possibly give you a realistic opinion.

 

But simultaneously, you alllllmost admire Rodgers for sticking up for his guys. He doesn't really have to do that.

[Fear The Chorizo]

Biggest takeaway for me in that presser is I hope Rodgers becomes GM right after his playing days are over...

 

GM for the bears or Vikings, that is

 

Moving on from declining veterans isn't always just about money, and often the limited roster space is more valuable to allow younger players to develop and have a prime. This isnt college football where you can carry 75+ scholarship players and get cute with redshirting guys.

[PeaveyFury]

But larger point, I don't get the sense Rodgers necessarily thought letting all those guys go was a mistake. I think he felt that he should have been consulted on the transaction. Subtle distinction but I think he is smart enough to understand there's a cap and you can't sign everyone.

 

And I think the counter argument to that would be that he shouldn’t.

 

You have a 12-13 year veteran, a guy that knows the relationships of the locker room better than the coaches, and the move you make directly impacts his job...I don't see how that's out of the question to just check in and see what he thinks about it. Yeah maybe the answer is still no.

 

And I guess that’s the heart of the question- is he happy just to have his opinion considered, or is he going to have the same (or bigger) hissy fit when they don’t act in accordance with said opinion?

 

Based on his history, I’d have to bet that wouldn’t go over well and would just result in the same stuff we’ve seen from him since may.

[PeaveyFury]

On Nelson, I’m reasonably certain that it was reported that the Packers DID offer to bring him back on a reduced deal and it was Nelson who declined the pay cut. Not sure his story is the same as Bulaga, Lang, Jones, etc. as a result.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

The Packers offered him the league minimum which was a bit over a million. Raiders offered 2/15 with $13mm guaranteed but I think he retired after one season, so in reality the Packers made a gesture that said "go away" but not much of an offer.

 

They were still right though. Personally I thought the Packers were going to stink that year and needed to start blowing up the roster. Point I made earlier is that MVS catching 40 passes is what needed to start happening with the team at that point, not bringing Jordy back to have 500 yards and win 6 games.

[rickh150]

Just like Favre it saddens me that the drama is even here…..

 

First off, Rodgers has no business running the team. Show up and play. Lead your team. You are making millions, adored by everyone, and he has these little beefs that make no sense in the grand scheme. He’s flat out wrong about most, if not all, veteran players not with the team anymore. It’s like he is looking for a reason to complain here when no legitimate ones are there with the team. If he is not comfortable with other areas in his life, whatever they are… and my guess they are numerous from family to broken relationships to spiritual issues, he might just be a troubled soul coming to work looking to make mountains out of mole hills.

 

Now, that being said and to Rodgers point,….. I can see as a QB, whomever you are, with wanting to have input ( not final say) on who you throw the ball to. I mean, if I’m a GM, I’d definitely want a guy like Aaron Rodgers to talk to me about what guys he trusts throwing to. If he likes Kumerow, keep him around for the right price. I struggle with management not wanting specific info from 12 to help make the team better at WR. Who blocks and runs or plays defense….. no, not really. But WRs seem like a big deal to me for a QB, and a WRs moxy, brains, and ability to get open are seen more by a QB in the moment than anyone.

[PeaveyFury]

Credit to Tom S. For the thought, but under Rodgers’ philosophy with regard to aging veterans, Rodgers himself wouldn’t have had a job here, right?

[reillymcshane]

On Nelson, I’m reasonably certain that it was reported that the Packers DID offer to bring him back on a reduced deal and it was Nelson who declined the pay cut. Not sure his story is the same as Bulaga, Lang, Jones, etc. as a result.

Yeah, many of these guys left because of the salary cap. We simply didn't have the room to sign them all. It wasn't like we didn't want Lindsey or Lang or whomever. They just got a lot more money than we could afford. It's part of the way things work.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Sort of, but as was pointed out to me when I made that point in this thread, Rodgers hasn't spent the last 4 years saying he wants to retire and continually saying how tired he is. He doesn't skip camp (usually) and fwiw seems to be a better-liked teammate at this stage of his career. Rodgers has, frankly, been better than Favre late in his career (pre-Vikings) too. Until recently you could say the roster was holding Rodgers back. There were several points where it started to feel like Favre's gambling was holding the team back.

 

So the situations are similar, but they are more different than one might think. There's the whole thing too that Favre literally quit, then tried to come back. Not sure Rodgers is given the job in '08 if Favre doesn't retire.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

Honestly, if I had to boil this whole thing down to a couple sentences, it's that Rodgers is as loyal as he is bitter, and he isn't really able to separate his personal relationships from his job. Even though he claims to understand it's a business, he has a very limited grasp of that side of things and part of the reason is that he's never had an actual job.

[Fear The Chorizo]

On Nelson, I’m reasonably certain that it was reported that the Packers DID offer to bring him back on a reduced deal and it was Nelson who declined the pay cut. Not sure his story is the same as Bulaga, Lang, Jones, etc. as a result.

Yeah, many of these guys left because of the salary cap. We simply didn't have the room to sign them all. It wasn't like we didn't want Lindsey or Lang or whomever. They just got a lot more money than we could afford. It's part of the way things work.

 

Maybe if a certain qb accounting for 30 percent of their cap really wanted his veteran buds to stick around he could have restructured has last extension to free up some financial room, or not signed the deal that made him the highest paid qb at the league at the same time when many of these players were not retained...

[reillymcshane]

Watched the full presser, and I think Rodgers came across about as well as he could have. He answered the questions. Didn't duck stuff. Said he's here and fully committed to 2021. Loves the team and the city and so forth. All good stuff.

 

However, we tend to focus on weirder stuff and that's all anyone talks about. But there was a lot more than talking about Jordy Nelson. That was one part of a much larger discussion.

 

I think one big thing was not that all those guys mentioned should (or could) have been re-signed - but that there were some mistakes and missed opportunities. And he feels that - in his position - he can help the team avoid some of those mistakes in the future.

 

It's a slippery road. When is a 'suggestion' really a demand. That sort of thing. But maybe they can actually forge in way to make things work. I hope so.

 

In the end, I think that - after winning the MVP - Rodgers thought the team would want to build around him for the next few years. And thus he offered up ways to do that. And when the team ignored all those suggestions - well, it made him feel as if his days were numbered.

 

It is what it is. Rodgers has a limited time frame to play, and I do not doubt he wants to maximize those years. I hope they all come to a good place - and we just go out and win.

[Jopal78]

Semi-facetiously, who wants the GM job of the Packers? On the one hand you have a Hall of Fame QB who if he just shows up and plays gives you a 50-50 shot of winning. Yet the QB wants to give input on what players on both sides of the ball should be retained, and when the front office doesn't ask the player for input on personnel he feels disrespected.

 

If the GM moves on from the disgruntled Hall of Fame QB and Rodgers plays well elsewhere, the GM will be go down as an all time idiot and get fired. On the other hand, if the the GM hangs caves in to the Hall of Fame QB until he eventually fails (and he will eventually fail), the team will suck and he'll get fired anyways.

[BillScottCanRake]

There is a lot to try to unpack from his presser. I am not sure I've got the the energy to convey all of my feelings on the topic, because I think there is a lot of gray in the differences between Rodgers and the front office. As a Packer fan, there is plenty of blame to go around.

 

One thing I noted is Rodgers seemed genuinely sad at times when he spoke today, and I think he does care about the Packers. Rodgers has always been an impressive speaker, and since I don't have a personal relationship with him I can't speak to why he was sad. Maybe it was because he didn't get his way, or maybe because he really does deeply care about the team and he's sad he can't impact them in the way he'd hoped. Or maybe it is because he really did want to play his entire career in Green Bay and he now knows that is unlikely. Whatever the reason and wherever the truth lies, I think the sadness was real.

[homer]

I guess the way I look at it is if I worked for a company where my boss didn't really care about my opinion and didn't listen to me I wouldn't be that happy. I realize it's not apples to apples with an NFL team and a salary cap, etc. but I think that's all Rodgers really wants. If you want to make the argument that that is no reason to go scorched earth on the team then I will not argue with you.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

It's tough because Rodgers waffles in the midst of his own press conference between someone who sounds very reasonable and totally gets it, to in the next couple breaths just not understanding that it isn't something personal the GM is doing.

[Jopal78]

I guess the way I look at it is if I worked for a company where my boss didn't really care about my opinion and didn't listen to me I wouldn't be that happy. I realize it's not apples to apples with an NFL team and a salary cap, etc. but I think that's all Rodgers really wants. If you want to make the argument that that is no reason to go scorched earth on the team then I will not argue with you.

 

I understand his analogy, but it's like an artisan carpenter working as a sub-contractor feels under appreciated the General Contractor doesn't seek input on who they should hire to do the electrical or plumbing on a project.

[homer]

I guess the way I look at it is if I worked for a company where my boss didn't really care about my opinion and didn't listen to me I wouldn't be that happy. I realize it's not apples to apples with an NFL team and a salary cap, etc. but I think that's all Rodgers really wants. If you want to make the argument that that is no reason to go scorched earth on the team then I will not argue with you.

 

I understand his analogy, but it's like an artisan carpenter working as a sub-contractor feels under appreciated the General Contractor doesn't seek input on who they should hire to do the electrical or plumbing on a project.

 

I guess I could see that if he really thinks he knows who they should keep on defense but he probably pretty keyed into guys that can contribute offensively.

[SomewhereInTime]

I like how nearly every name Rodgers rattled off would've been a bad idea to bring back. You can't afford to overpay veteran free agents when you already have over 20mil in cap eaten up every year by your QB. Sustained success requires a front office to look to the future.

[rickh150]

I like how nearly every name Rodgers rattled off would've been a bad idea to bring back. You can't afford to overpay veteran free agents when you already have over 20mil in cap eaten up every year by your QB. Sustained success requires a front office to look to the future.

 

And right…12’s contract is the main reason why others listed aren’t here. It’s like he’s a contradiction of himself. He knows the right answer but can’t fully accept it.