Rodgers Hints at Top Options for 2022 NFL Season

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers isn’t sure what he’s going to do in 2022. He perhaps provided some clues after winning his fourth NFL MVP on Thursday night.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Feb 11, 2022 12:05 AM EST

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Aaron Rodgers’ decision on his NFL career could be down to two choices.

The Green Bay Packers or retirement.

After winning his fourth NFL MVP award on Thursday night at NFL Honors, he fielded five questions during a Zoom teleconference. One was about winning MVP. The other four were about his future.

“I think you’ve got to take some of the emotion out of it and then kind of lean into understanding what it takes to revamp and feel like what’s the best place, the best decision for me moving forward,” Rodgers said.

He quickly stopped himself.

“Not really place,” he continued. “More just what does it feel like to commit to a season if that’s what I want to do.”

The Packers drafted Rodgers in 2005 and he’s been the team’s starting quarterback since 2008. He rose to prominence in Green Bay. He won a Super Bowl championship in Green Bay. He built a Hall of Fame resume in Green Bay. And he experienced a career rebirth under coach Matt LaFleur in Green Bay.

Judging by 10 1/2 minutes of comments on Thursday, he doesn’t seem interested in continuing his pursuit of a second Super Bowl championship in a different city.

That doesn’t mean Rodgers will be back for a 15th season as the team’s starting quarterback. While embroiled in a dispute with management, Rodgers skipped all of last offseason’s workouts. That time away served as a taste of retirement.

“I talked at length at various times about being comfortable walking away and just not playing,” Rodgers said. “I don’t want to create more questions than I probably already have, but I don’t fear retirement, I don’t fear moving on. I’m very proud of what I’ve accomplished, proud that I’ve accomplished it in Green Bay over the last 17 years, and excited about the future, whatever that ends up being or looking like.”

But the fire burns, and there’s nothing that can fully replace that desire in retirement. If he returns, the Packers will be Super Bowl contenders yet again. And there’s a chance to equal Peyton Manning’s record of five MVPs. And if he’s really in it for the long haul, there are records to chase.

Critically, Rodgers and general manager Brian Gutekunst worked this season to not just mend fences but to build a strong relationship. So, when they met at the end of the season, the talks produced constructive conversations.

“(I’m) still highly competitive and still [have] that bitter taste from the divisional game, so definitely a lot to weigh,” Rodgers said, “but thankful for the Packers organization and the conversations that we had at the end of the season and just the way the whole season went. I was obviously frustrated about some things in the offseason. We had a ton of conversations and I just felt like there was so much growth, and I’m so thankful for that. I’m thankful for the relationships – with Brian as much as anybody.

“There was obviously some things that were voiced in the offseason, privately between him and myself, and I’m just thankful for the response. There was a lot of things that were done to make me feel really special and important to the present, the past and the future of the franchise. And I’ve got to say that Russ (Ball) and Brian especially had a big hand in that. And it didn’t go unnoticed.”

With Rodgers, the Packers became the first team in NFL history with three consecutive seasons of 13 wins. While it wasn’t enough to get them back to their first Super Bowl since 2010, his presence at least gives the Packers a chance to contend, which is why coach Matt LaFleur and team President Mark Murphy have said they wanted Rodgers back for 2022.

Rodgers acknowledged there’s work to be done if he returns. That presumably means signing a contract extension and getting far enough under the salary cap to bring back All-Pro receiver Davante Adams. And if he doesn’t return, there’s a “good nucleus” in place to help Jordan Love with a strong running game and defense.

“Should I feel like it’s my time to move on and do something else,” he said, “I’ll be extremely eternally grateful for the Green Bay Packers organization, the fan base and all the incredible 17 years’ worth of memories and friendships and special, special moments that I’ve gotten to share with members of the organization, my teammates, people that work there and the fans, as well. I’m just super-thankful for every single moment in the journey.”

One: Aaron Rodgers Becomes Only Four-Time MVP

With last year’s MVP, Rodgers joined four legends as three-time MVPs: running back Jim Brown (1957, 1958, 1965), quarterback Johnny Unitas (1959, 1964, 1967), quarterback Brett Favre (1995 through 1997) and quarterback Tom Brady (2007, 2010, 2017).

With his fourth MVP, Rodgers has broken from that pack and is alone in second place. Peyton Manning won a record five MVPs – four with Indianapolis (2003, 2004, 2008 and 2009) and one with Denver (2013).

For Manning and Brady, their first MVP and last MVP were separated by 10 years. Rodgers’ fourth MVP comes 10 years after his first.

Two: Rodgers’ Red-Hot Finish

Rodgers put his stamp on the MVP race with a sensational finishing stretch to the season. Despite laboring through a broken toe that curtailed his practice time, Rodgers ended the season with seven consecutive games of two-plus touchdown passes and zero interceptions. That’s the second-longest streak in NFL history. In 2010, Tom Brady did it in nine consecutive games. Rodgers threw 20 touchdown passes during his streak, which he’ll carry into next season. Brady threw 24 touchdown passes.

Three: Rodgers Showed He’s Valuable, Part 1

Being MVP doesn’t simply mean having the best stats. It’s that middle letter – the “V” for Valuable. The Packers were the second-most-impacted team by injuries this season, according to ManGamesLost.com. In terms of the value of the player and the amount of games missed, David Bakhtiari was the most important injury of the NFL season, Za’Darius Smith was second and Jaire Alexander was ninth. Rodgers’ play obviously was an important part of the team’s 13-win season.

Four: Rodgers Showed He’s Valuable, Part 2

In games started and finished by Rodgers, the Packers went 13-2. The Packers went 0-2 with Jordan Love starting against Kansas City and playing the second half at Detroit.

Five: MVP? Yes. Super Bowl? No.

Incredibly, being the Most Valuable Player of the NFL season doesn’t mean being the Most Valuable Player of the NFL postseason. No MVP has won the award in the same year he won the Super Bowl since Kurt Warner with the St. Louis Rams in 1999.

Six: Rodgers Leads Three Key Categories

Last season, Rodgers joined Steve Young as the only quarterbacks since 1940 to win the Percentage Triple Crown of completion percentage, touchdown percentage and interception percentage on the way to leading the league in passer rating. This season, Rodgers finished third in completion percentage but was first again in touchdown percentage, interception percentage and passer rating.

That feat has been accomplished only five times since 1960: Rodgers in 2020 and 2021, Tom Brady in 2010, Young in 1992 and Ken Anderson in 1981.

Seven: Efficiency, Not Volume, Gives Rodgers MVP Edge Over Brady

The debate between Rodgers and Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is fascinating. Brady put up some absurd numbers in leading the NFL with 5,316 passing yards and 43 touchdowns. The Buccaneers also went 13-4.

Brady crushed Rodgers (and everyone else) by the numbers because he threw 47 passes more than any other quarterback and 188 more passes Rodgers. Give Rodgers the same number of attempts as Brady, and Rodgers would have thrown for 5,572 yards and 50 touchdowns and beaten Brady’s completions record with 494.

Eight: Don’t Pick on Rodgers

There have been 13 seasons in which a quarterback threw at least 400 passes and finished the season with an interception percentage of less than 1.0. Rodgers has five of those seasons, including 2021, when he led the NFL with an interception rate of 0.75 percent. Tom Brady (twice) is the only other quarterback with multiple seasons.

Rodgers has finished with an interception rate of less than 1.0 percent four consecutive seasons. No other quarterback has even done it in back-to-back seasons.

Nine: In Good Hands with Rodgers

Perhaps Rodgers needs to switch insurance companies and pitch for the one that talks about being in good hands. Not only did he lead the NFL with only four interceptions, but he didn’t lose a fumble, either. That gave Rodgers a league-low four turnovers. Seattle’s Russell Wilson, who missed three games due to injury, was a distant second with seven.

Turnovers have to be a part of any conversation about the Packers’ quarterbacking future. In 561 passing plays (531 attempts, 30 sacks), Rodgers had just those four turnovers. In 65 passing plays, Jordan Love also had four turnovers (three interceptions, one fumble).

Ten: Touchdown-to-Interception Ratio Champion

With 37 touchdowns vs. four interceptions, Rodgers threw 9.25 touchdown passes for every interception, more than double Kirk Cousins’ runner-up 4.71 (33 touchdowns, seven interceptions). That’s the seventh-best mark in NFL history. In NFL history, there have been 12 seasons in which a quarterback had a touchdown-to-interception ratio of at least 6.50. Rodgers has half of those seasons, including four in a row.

If there’s one stat you take from this, here it is: There have been six seasons in NFL history of 6.50 touchdowns per interception and 4,000-plus passing yards. Rodgers has all six.

Quote to Note

“There’s obviously a faction, based on the response when I tested positive, that want to demonize me for my decision to be unvaccinated. That’s the environment that we’re living in. There is not room for dissenting opinions or individual freedoms or people to have a different view. … I think the MVP should be about the most valuable player on the team. A lot of times it goes to the best player on the best team, and we’re the best team. So, if voters want to use the offseason or don’t like my stance being unvaccinated, that’s their prerogative. I don’t think it’s right, but that’s their prerogative.”