Aaron Rodgers made a brutal request to the Green Bay Packers almost two years before he was finally traded away from the team.
The legendary Packers quarterback had been with the team since 2005, going on to become one of the greatest of all-time. But after not playing up to his usual standards in 2018 and 2019, the Packers shocked the NFL world and drafted a quarterback in the first round of the 2020 draft - earmarking him to be Rodgers' replacement.
Rodgers replied by winning back-to-back MVP awards, showing the team they'd made a mistake in essentially writing him off and looking towards the future. But at the end of the 2023 season, Rodgers asked to be traded to the New York Jets, which eventually went through.
Two years prior to finally leaving, after winning the MVP award in 2020, Rodgers' agent reportedly requested that the team either trade him away or fire general manager Brian Gutekunst, according to The Athletic.
Rodgers' relationship with Gutekunst had been strained, with the general manager making the decision to draft Jordan Love as his replacement. The Packers refused the ruthless request with Gutekunst still in his role to this day.
After the request was reportedly made in the off-season of 2021, Rodgers then stayed away from the team until a few days before training camp - with Gutekunst 'offering an olive branch' by trading for one of Rodgers' all-time favourite teammates in Randall Cobb.
Rodgers remained unhappy with the organisation though, and gave them his thoughts on the lack of communication between him and the team moving forward.
Gutekunst remained in the job, while Rodgers played two further seasons with the Packers before sealing his move to the Jets. The new season will mark the first time he'll be playing in another uniform in the NFL.
After being drafted in the first round, Love was made to wait three years before getting his chance to start, as was Rodgers when he'd been the back-up for Brett Favre.
Love will now start in Rodgers' place, but remains only on a two-year deal, and will need to impress this season - or the team could look to the 2024 stacked NFL Draft for quarterbacks for their long-term successor.
