Aaron Rodgers - are we RELAX-ed?

[Hottoddies]

Aaron Rodgers is one of the highest paid players; this isn't about the money. This isn't some selfish pissy fit. It's about doing what he can do to making his team a winner. Nothing about last years draft said "I want to be a winner". And cutting a low wage UDFA WR that your QB feels can help you win games was just senseless stupidity. The GM isn't being a good team member and that is what is pissing Rodgers off.

[Bronco Billy]

Changes nothing.

Yup. But it's nice to know someone is reading all of the off-season, anonymously sourced reporting

These reports are completely consistent with what some former Packers are on record as having said about Rodgers.

[Dynasty DeLorean]

As a Dillon truther, the most annoying thing about this is I’m convinced that the only reason they re-signed Jones was to appease Rodgers and get him to stay. And now Rodgers might be leaving anyway. ARGH! Lmao

[OhCruelestRanter]

It’s perfectly within GB’s rights to prepare for life after Rodgers.

It’s perfectly within Rodgers’ rights to demand a trade if he no longer wants to play for this team.

Both of these things can be true.

Personally I think GB bleep up. You have to at least give Rodgers the heads up before the draft if you’re seriously considering it, or you risk the exact situation you’re in now. Rodgers is a notoriously petty psychopath who doesn’t talk to his own family- failing to anticipate this was absolutely a failure of management and to screw it up this badly over Jordan Love feels like a fireable offense. Rodgers’ apparent lack of emotional maturity is irrelevant. Managing a team is about more than talent acquisition and salary cap maneuvering. You have to manage personalities, just like every other manager in every other industry. Gutekunst spectacularly failed to manage the most important personality on the team.

[mild]

As a Dillon truther, the most annoying thing about this is I’m convinced that the only reason they re-signed Jones was to appease Rodgers and get him to stay. And now Rodgers might be leaving anyway. ARGH! Lmao

I had the exact same thought. It's most definitely frustrating... as if our Dillon stocks couldn't tank any further, a switch to Jordan Love will pretty much be the death knell...

And that sure does sound like it's happening, by the way:

NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reports Packers QB Aaron Rodgers told Green Bay free agents that he would not be with the Packers in 2021.
Garafolo added that Rodgers was telling his team's free agents as early as the beginning of the 2020 season that he would be gone. He also noted that it's possible the players simply did not believe Rodgers would actually leave Green Bay, evidenced by David Bakhtiari signing a four-year extension with the team last fall. Rodgers has been disgruntled with the team for some time now but it appears like he has been planning his departure for well over a year. With this level of commitment, it's possible that he does hang up the cleats before returning to the Packers. From a fantasy perspective, all Green Bay players come with an extreme downside. If Rodgers does find a new home, the change to Jordan Love will be catastrophic for the offense.

[M-Dub]

Guaranteed portions of the contract are there to protect the players, just like the ability to cut players is there to protect the teams. Both the NFL and the NFLPA have agreed to these terms. It’s amazing how some see only one side of the equation and are convinced that players are getting screwed. Rodgers has already had like $112M of guarantees kick in on his 4 year contract. How is it that he’s getting a raw deal here?

Players have guarantees in their contracts. If the Packers cut Rodgers right now, he would have made 38M for the next 3 seasons he didn't play for them and they would be fully within the terms of the contract signed. If Rodgers quits right now, the Packers don't get any guaranteed games played from him over the next 3 seasons and Rodgers would be breaking the contract. If Rodgers didn't like the contract he shouldn't have signed it.

I'm not talking numbers here or saying that Rodgers is upset about his contract.

I'm saying that strictly from a general standpoint, how is Rodgers asking out any different from a GM deciding they want to cut a player on any given year?

GMs do it and nobody says a word because "it's a part of the game". Players do it and they're called divas and unloyal for wanting out.

You can't talk about this and not talk about the numbers, because the player has already gotten paid. Unless Rodgers is including in his talk that he is going to pay back the signing bonus and restructure payments, but I highly doubt that is the case. These contracts are worked out to the advantage of both sides...The player gets paid something even if cut and the team can cut players early if they aren't working out. It is specifically written into the contracts when teams can cut players and what the penalty is to the team if they do via the guaranteed portion of the contract. It is in fact VERY different when the player decides they want out of the contract, because they are BREAKING the contract whereas the GM is operating entirely within the contract when they cut a player. Players that do this are divas and unloyal. If you want to pick where you play each year....sign 1 year contracts each year. The only players that have even a slight bit of room to bitch are the ones on rookie contracts, because they have no room to negotiate those.

I’m no Aaron Rodgers fanboy, but this “analysis” is just ridiculously one-sided. You don’t think there are also terms and penalties specifically written into the contract for when a player decides he wants out? When a team cuts a player, it is, in fact, BREAKING the contract and is simply accepting the agreed-upon penalty for doing so. I don’t see how what Rodgers is doing is any different. It’s not like he’s exploiting a loophole here at the expense of some poor, helpless multi-billion dollar franchise.

[Shoreline Steamers]

I’m no Aaron Rodgers fanboy, but this “analysis” is just ridiculously one-sided. You don’t think there are also terms and penalties specifically written into the contract for when a player decides he wants out? When a team cuts a player, it is, in fact, BREAKING the contract and is simply accepting the agreed-upon penalty for doing so. I don’t see how what Rodgers is doing is any different. It’s not like he’s exploiting a loophole here at the expense of some poor, helpless multi-billion dollar franchise.

The concept of "dead money" and "cap-hits" would seem to apply. Exactly as you say, the penalty a team may decide to pay to cut ties with a player before the negotiated time period. Just as the player generally would have to pay a penalty, in this case an $11.5m signing bonus. Additionally, said player would be required to pay an additional $11.5m should he decide to stay retired in 2022.

Both sides are potential financial losers depending on how things end up. The only way to a win/win scenario is for the player to be traded. Expect that to happen sometime after June 1, 2021.

[Ice]

The reality is both the player and the NFL franchise want contracts. They are not one sided like many may think outside the basic agreed to in advance rookie wage scale language agreed to by the CBA.

Once one gets to Rodgers status both parties need checks and balances given the Millions and Millions at stake.

So far neither side as broken any contract. We haven't even heard first hand that Rodgers wants out. We have heard from the team that they are trying to fix this mess they created.

My guess is this won't be resolved until after June 1st.

[killer_of_giants]

both rodgers and the packers are in the wrong for me. if rodgers was willing to ignore his own ego and take less money, like a certain serial-winner has done in the past few seasons, then the whole team would have been more competitive.

on the other hand, when you have an MVP-caliber QB who isn't "old" by todays' QB standards, you don't draft a replacement, you draft someone that will contribute right away and go for the win. getting a replacement before it's all over is fine, but with how the game works now, you want a rookie QB to start in his second season, third at most, otherwise it's not really worth it, so love's pick was a couple of years too early imo (well unless you want to trade away your MVP QB, than it was perfect timing).

[Shankopotamus]

Packers GM needs to be fired honestly. I'd say there's a 90% chance ARod plays for GB this year.

[StripesOfKC]

Packers GM needs to be fired honestly. I'd say there's a 90% chance ARod plays for GB this year.

Yeah how dare he build one of the best rosters in the league

[Pac_Eddy]

Packers GM needs to be fired honestly. I'd say there's a 90% chance ARod plays for GB this year.

Yeah how dare he build one of the best rosters in the league

That roster without Rodgers probably doesn't make the playoffs.

[StripesOfKC]

Packers GM needs to be fired honestly. I'd say there's a 90% chance ARod plays for GB this year.

Yeah how dare he build one of the best rosters in the league

That roster without Rodgers probably doesn't make the playoffs.

Depends who the replacement QB is

The Bucs roster without Brady didn't make the playoffs but no one would doubt it's one of the best in the league

[Ice]

Packers GM needs to be fired honestly. I'd say there's a 90% chance ARod plays for GB this year.

Yeah how dare he build one of the best rosters in the league

That roster without Rodgers probably doesn't make the playoffs.

Best I can tell in Brian's top 3 rounds since becoming GM.

2018 draft; Packers netted 1 starter
2019 draft; Packers netted 3 starters
2020 draft; Packers netted 0 starters.

[Cameron Giles]

You can't talk about this and not talk about the numbers, because the player has already gotten paid. Unless Rodgers is including in his talk that he is going to pay back the signing bonus and restructure payments, but I highly doubt that is the case. These contracts are worked out to the advantage of both sides...The player gets paid something even if cut and the team can cut players early if they aren't working out. It is specifically written into the contracts when teams can cut players and what the penalty is to the team if they do via the guaranteed portion of the contract. It is in fact VERY different when the player decides they want out of the contract, because they are BREAKING the contract whereas the GM is operating entirely within the contract when they cut a player. Players that do this are divas and unloyal. If you want to pick where you play each year....sign 1 year contracts each year. The only players that have even a slight bit of room to bitch are the ones on rookie contracts, because they have no room to negotiate those.

Cutting a player is...breaking the contract. You are still preventing them from reaching the total value of the deal that you both agreed to. If it's a four-year deal and they get cut after year 2, then who broke the contract? Let's not act like teams don't eat money either to cut players before it's more practical to do so.

I'm not even faulting GM's for cutting players, because it's a part of the business in a league that's hard capped. But, players have the same right to want out if they feel a situation is no longer meeting their desires as a player.

I don't understand how NFL players can be unloyal to organizations who are constantly unloyal as the nature of the business allows them to be.