Aaron Rodgers clearly has some complicated feelings about how his Packers tenure came to an end, but the new Jets quarterback still loves the town of Green Bay and his teammates—and has a nice connection with one young player with whom he never suited up.
After trading Rodgers to the Jets, handing the reins to his former understudy Jordan Love, the Packers drafted Penn State quarterback Sean Clifford in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Clifford isn’t expected to fill Rodgers’s shoes, but he is inheriting the locker that the four-time league MVP inhabited for 17 years.
To celebrate that passing of the torch, and his move to Green Bay, Rodgers sent Clifford a special housewarming gift: a signed No. 12 Packers jersey with a special note for the rookie QB:
“Sean—Welcome to GB! Enjoy that great city & my locker!” Rodgers wrote on the framed jersey.
Not a bad a house warming gift…thank you! @Fanatics @AaronRodgers12 #GoPackGo pic.twitter.com/CfhyejVOHn
— Sean Clifford (@seancliff14) June 30, 2023
Clifford hasn’t shied away from becoming the latest in a history line of Packers quarterbacks, and for the connection to Rodgers. “It’s cool. That’s what it is,” he told reporters when asked about inheriting Rodgers’s locker.
“I understand who was in here before, and I respect everything about that, but at the same time, I came in, I found my name on the plate, and I sat down,” Clifford continued. “I’m doing whatever it takes to win games here. I’m very appreciative of the opportunity.”
