Aaron Rodgers has emerged from the darkness, but he’s not quite ready to shine a light on what his future in football holds.
In his first public comments about his recent darkness retreat, and whether he’s come to a decision about playing football in 2023—and whether that will be with the Packers or another team—Rodgers says that he fully intends to make an announcement “sooner rather than later,” acknowledging that an early decision is best for all involved.
Appearing on the Aubrey Marcus Podcast Wednesday, Rodgers was asked whether he has a timeline for a decision. He cited the Packers’ situation with Brett Favre in 2008, when he retired in March before choosing to return to football months later, eventually requesting his release from Green Bay before being traded to the Jets. Rodgers, Favre’s former backup, doesn’t want things to play out in a similar way, citing “tension” among the team that summer.
“It’s best for anybody who has an interest in this to make a decision sooner rather than later,” Rodgers said. “I remember when Favre… before he retired, there were times in April and May, we weren’t sure if he was going to come back because he didn’t come to any of the offseason program. Then in 2008, he actually did retire in March and then kind of said, ’No, no, no,’ actually in June after OTAs, ‘I actually want to come back and play.’ And that’s when he was traded to the Jets. There was obviously a lot of tension that summer. For everybody involved directly and indirectly, it’s best for a decision earlier.
“I feel really good about the conversations that are going to be had, that have been had with important people in my life, yourself included, that helped to orient me. But I’m not looking for somebody to tell me what the answer is. All the answers are right inside me. I touched many of them, definitely the feelings on both sides in the darkness. I’m thankful for that time. There’s a finality to the decision. I don’t make it lightly. I don’t want to drag anybody around. I’m answering questions about it because I got asked about it. I’m talking about it because it’s important to me. If you don’t like it and you think it’s drama, and you think I’m being a diva or whatever, then just tune it out. That’s fine. But this is my life. It’s important to me. I’ll make a decision soon enough and we’ll go down that road. I’ll be really excited about it.”
The decision doesn’t come down to whether Rodgers believes he can still play. He referenced being “doubted” after the 2019 NFL season—a down year by his standards as he adjusted to first-year coach Matt LaFleur’s offense. He’d go on to win back-to-back NFL MVP awards the next two years.
“I’ve been doubted before,” Rodgers said. “Honestly, I felt in the first year that Matt was here—Matt was in Green Bay in 2019—I felt at times like a game manager. I didn’t quite understand what we were doing at times on offense. My job is to take care of the football, and I did. I threw four interceptions and 26 touchdowns and we were 13–3, but I felt like there was so much more. And then they drafted my replacement [Jordan Love]. And then I won MVP twice. I threw 85 touchdowns and nine interceptions in two years. And obviously, there were changes that happened on the team and the coaching staff and I didn’t have my best year playing, and there’s probably people who think I’m done. I thought I was done before I became COVID MVP twice. There would be plenty of inspiration down that road. But I have a great peace about it that I would not have without the darkness.”
