Throughout his 18 seasons with the Green Bay Packers, four-time NFL MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers saw many of his teammates leave in free agency or via trade. Of course, that is part of the business of football. However, the fact that many of these players were both fan-favorites and his favorites made their departures bitter pills to swallow.
Many times, though, some of these players returned at the end of their careers, signing one-day contracts so that they could retire as members of the Packers. Examples of former Rodgers teammates to have done this are Jordy Nelson, John Kuhn, Mason Crosby, James Jones, AJ Hawk, and Al Harris.
When Green Bay traded Rodgers ahead of the 2023 NFL season, many assumed that he would, one day, return and retire in a similar fashion. But the quarterback himself is not so sure.
Aaron Rodgers May or May Not Retire with the Green Bay Packers
During a recent question and answer session in Austin, Texas, Rodgers was asked by a Packers fan in the crowd if he planned on signing a one-day contract with Green Bay when he decided to retire, so that he could end his career with the organization who drafted him.
“You know, I’ve thought about that and I don’t understand what the reason for that is,” Rodgers admitted (via Sports Illustrated). “At the same time, I grew up a Niner fan and most of my favorite players retired as a Niner. Jerry Rice, who went to three other teams, came back and retired as a Niner. So I understand the cool thing about it, but if I didn’t do it, would that make a difference in how I’m viewed in the Packers eyes?”
After all, Brett Favre, Rodgers’ predecessor, did not retire with Green Bay when he retired from the NFL, and his last season came with the hated Minnesota Vikings. Still, many Packers fans still hold Favre in high regard.
But Rodgers did not brush off the possibility of retiring as a Packer. However, he did seem to hint that, if he were to do so, it would be because the team asked him to:
“When I retire, in four years I’m going to go into the Packer Hall of Fame. May or may not get my number retired—whether they do or not that’s fine. But in four years I’ll be in the Packer Hall of Fame. … There’s a lot of love from me and how I feel about the team. If i do or if I don’t, I don’t think it should make a difference. I’m not sure yet. If they approach me about it, I probably would.”
While Rodgers claims that he still has a great deal of love for the Packers organization, his disdain for general manager Brian Gutekunst is well-known. That may be one of the things that keeps him from doing so.
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