Aaron Rodgers appeared on Kenny Mayne’s final episode of ESPN’s “SportsCenter” and spoke about his relationship with the Green Bay Packers.
Monday was a somber day for the sports media world, as Kenny Mayne appeared on his final episode of “SportsCenter” after parting ways with ESPN. Mayne had a huge lineup of guests, with quarterback Aaron Rodgers being one of them, whose relationship with the Green Bay Packers appears to be in turmoil.
On the day that Rodgers opted against attending the Packers’ organized team activities, Mayne asked the reigning NFL MVP about his future with the organization that drafted him back in 2005. Rodgers was shying away from the topic, saying that he was on the show to celebrate Mayne’s tenure with ESPN. Then, Rodgers said that “anything is on the table” in regards to what is next for him.
Aaron Rodgers speaks about future with Green Bay Packers
When fans and analysts attempt to pinpoint when the relationship soured between Rodgers and the Packers, they fall upon the team’s decision to select Utah State quarterback Jordan Love in the 2020 NFL Draft. Rodgers squashed that storyline, saying that the tiff never stemmed from the draft pick, saying that he “loves’” the young quarterback, as well as the coaching staff, teammates and fanbase.
Rather, Rodgers takes issue with the team’s philosophy.
“With my situation, look it’s never been about the draft pick, picking Jordan,” Rodgers told Mayne, via ESPN’s Rob Demovsky. “I love Jordan; he’s a great kid. [We’ve had] a lot of fun to work together. Love the coaching staff, love my teammates, love the fan base in Green Bay. An incredible 16 years. It’s just kind of about a philosophy and maybe forgetting that it is about the people that make the thing go. It’s about character, it’s about culture, it’s about doing things the right way.”
On the night of the first-round of this year’s NFL Draft, a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter indicated that Rodgers had no desire to play for the Packers. Despite that, general manager Brian Gutekunst said he has no plans to trade Rodgers. Since then, we have heard the variety of reports and rumors about how fractured the relationship has become.
With Rodgers not appearing for OTA’s, the Packers signed quarterbacks Blake Bortles and Kurt Benkert to work behind Love on the depth chart.
Mayne got the most out of Rodgers since that aforementioned report dropped. Rodgers said it himself — anything is on the table at this point. All the NFL world can do is wait for a resolution, whatever and whenever that is.